Learning from the Enemy
by LavenderHaze
Summary: Zuko had changed. He accepted his fate and joined the Gaang. There, he finds the value of each member and discovers the power of true love, thanks to a waterbender. He even uncovers secrets of himself he never imagined there could be. [Zutara, Taang] R&R!
1. Prologue

**GAHH!! I swear, there's something wrong with me! I already have one story that I **_**should **_**be working on, and I am, but since Zutara is just too cute, I have to do ANOTHER one! So here you go! Another Zuko and Katara fic for all you Zutara lovers who are like me! OBSESSED! Wait no, that came out wrong… I didn't mean obsessed in a **_**bad **_**way. I meant…. Like… You're VERY intricately interested in the Zutarian subject! Yea! That's what I meant… Ah… Enough of my blabbering! On with the friggin' story!**

_**This story is mainly told from Zuko's perspective. Not like first person's POV, but it still mostly revolves around Zuko.**_

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**Chapter 1: Prologue**

"I miss you… I love you…. Those are the three words I have never actually _**said **_to you…"

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The current Fire Lord, twenty-six year old Zuko, leaned over the railing of his balcony, staring at the rising sun. The large, glaring, orange disc was only halfway over the horizon, but its glow streaked the sky with brilliant colors of cotton candy pink, pale lavender, rose red, fiery orange, and aqua blue. Aqua…. That was the color of her eyes. Wait, no. Her eyes were millions of colors. They could be an ocean blue, like the serenity of the sea. They could be a sky blue, where he could see himself getting lost in. Damn. It's been five years already and he _still _remembered her every feature. Her smooth, tan skin, her deep, blue eyes, and long, wavy chocolate hair still stayed fresh in his often wandering mind.

"Why do you do this to me…?" Zuko whispered to no one in particular.

A chilly morning breeze blew through Zuko's long, shaggy mop of dark brown hair. Long bangs flew into his eyes in a dark and mysterious way that every girl in the Fire Nation would've drooled over.

Knock. Knock.

"Come in," Zuko signaled, turning reluctantly away from the sunrise.

A humble servant dressed in red bowed as he opened the door. "My Lord, General Iroh is waiting for you for breakfast. He suggests a warm meal."

"Tell him thank you, but I need to think for myself for a little while." Zuko nodded towards the door.

"Yes, my Lord." The servant bowed again and left, closing the door softly behind him.

Zuko sighed heavily once the servant was out of sight. His eyes trailed around the room and landed on a certain wooden box, placed on top of his wooden dresser. The thought of it struck him and before he could protest against his mind, his form darted towards the box and snatched it up like some food-hungry dog. Opening the lid, Zuko gasped softly at what was inside. A simple piece of yellowed parchment rested there, all rolled up with a satin, blue ribbon.

The Fire Lord picked it up and slid off the ribbon. Unfurling the paper, Zuko paused before he read it. He knew he had to prepare himself for what was to happen. His mind would travel back in time, back to the years when he and his most loved one, Katara, had complete freedom to be reckless. Ah… The teenage years….

_Dear Zuko,_

_It's me, Katara, as you can tell from the hand-writing. How is ruling a whole Nation going? Sokka said it was probably boring since you'd have a lot of meetings… Anyways, we're doing just fine. We were all really happy after getting your last note. Aang says hi and wants to give you some useful advice. As quoted, 'Remember, even if you're fire lord, you can't make everyone bow down to you and obey you just like that. You must rule with generosity, a gentle heart, and with two feet on the ground.' Ah… Who knew Aang could say such… wise words? I mean, even now, he hasn't outgrown his childhood. From Toph, she wants to tell you good luck with ruling. You'd need it. Pretty straight forward, eh? Now, down to the point. I really miss you, Zuko, and I wish I could see you again, but currently, we all have a lot of clean up business to do at the air temples. I wish you could come here to help ,but unfortunately, your work gets in the way. This clean-up could take a pretty long time, so I hope you can wait for me. Please, promise you'll wait for me? Oh, and how's your uncle?_

_Love, Katara, Sokka, Aang, Toph, and Momo_

Zuko stared down at the note. He still hadn't replied due to the many loads of papers he had to sign and truces he had to make, not to mention the recent argument he had to settle between the Yang noble family and the Chen noble family, whom he both needed for their financial support.

Getting up, he decided not to push the subject of matter away anymore. Reaching for a brush, ink, and some fresh parchment, Zuko started to conceive of the perfect letter to send back to Katara, the one he hadn't seen in three years. His heart ached as his wavering hand wrote, brush stroke after brush stroke. Black ink splattered recklessly onto the paper, but he knew Katara would understand. After all, she got him to open up and she understood his situation and helped him with it.

_Dear my beloved,_

_Uncle is doing just fine. Believe me. He eats well every single day and I possibly see his stomach growing bigger by the day. He probably weighs two times more than he did back when we were defeating my late father. Thank the Avatar, or Aang for me. That advice is pretty useful. And tell Toph I appreciate her… luck, but I think I'm doing pretty well! And I sincerely hope that you're very well off. Are you getting enough food? Should I send people over to help you clean? Reply as soon as you can… And sorry for the late letter. I was busy over these past months. I miss you, too… Hope you haven't forgotten me yet._

_Love, Zuko and Iroh_

Zuko left the note on his desk to dry. Satisfied, he pushed his chair back, the legs scraping the flooring. After about three years? The cleaning should be done, but he didn't care. He'd have his messenger locate Katara no matter how long it took and how far he'd have to walk.

Knock. Knock.

"Who is it." Zuko said it as more of a demand rather than a question.

"Your uncle, Zuko."

"Come in." Zuko squinted outside his window at the almost full sun.

The door opened slightly as Iroh peeked in through the crack. His old, wrinkled eyes still sparkled with a certain twinkle that he never had gotten rid of since his younger days. "Fire Lord Zuko, we need to talk."

"Yes, uncle?"

"We need to talk. Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai are all in the dungeons. Advisor Cheung suggests to execute Azula for treason, perjury, and just plain cruelty," Iroh acknowledged.

"How about the other two?" Zuko winced.

"Cheung says that they should be spared and given a second chance. Oh, and Mai wants to talk."

Zuko cringed visibly. Mai… His old girlfriend…. She still paid attention to him and he knew that she'd never stop caring. Even after betraying her for the Avatar, even after hooking up with Katara, she still loved him with all her heart and would never love anybody else.

"It's ok, Zuko. Face her like the man you are in the present," Iroh assured Zuko.

The Fire Lord nodded and left, his mind screaming mentally at how he was probably going to break down in front of his ex.

Upon Zuko's exit, Iroh decided at that moment to take a peek around the luxurious room. His vision caught sight of the drying letter on the desk. His eyes darting towards the door, Iroh picked up the parchment and read it, scanning every word carefully for hints of angst or something like that.

"Zuko…." Iroh muttered worriedly, his eyebrows knitting together at the words his nephew had used.

It was a tragic thing, really. Zuko's story wasn't exactly the happiest one ever. To make a long story short, Zuko fell in love with a waterbender named Katara near the end of the war, and couldn't see her in three years because of a lot of business. Iroh knew Zuko really well and he'd be willing to bet 100 gold coins that Zuko still really loved Katara and would never forget her no matter what.

"Uncle! What are you doing!" Zuko's voice cut into Iroh's elaborate train of thoughts.

"Oh! I uh…. I was just thinking." Iroh chuckled nervously. "Did you talk to Mai yet?"

"No. I'll talk to her later. Now can you get out of my room?" Zuko rolled his eyes.

"You still love her, don't you?" Iroh inquired.

"Get. Out."

Iroh shook his head. He had a feeling his nephew was desperate for something from the kind water bender.

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Zuko sat on his soft bed in frustration. The whole room was silent, just to his liking. He needed some time to think about things on his own. His mind subconsciously started to drift back to the very beginning…..

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**A/N: **I'm hoping for a lot of reviews for this story! The first chapter is pretty short, I know, but It'll get a lot longer later on! For as all of you know, this is just the prologue. I hope you R&R so I know if people like it or not. If not many people like it, then I'll discontinue it. If a lot of people like it, then I'll go on updating! So, it's all up to you guys! Constructed criticism is welcomed as well as suggestions, ideas, or any mistakes you'd like to point out! Hope you read and review!


	2. Second Chances

**Ahahaha! I'm going to update two times in one day! Amazing! O.O Anyways, this is when the ACTUAL story starts. It happens right after the episode 'The Day of the Black Sun Part II.' You know, the part where Zuko is in the balloon-y thingy? That's when this whole thing starts. So, hope you enjoy! And make sure to R&R! BTW, I thank you sokkantylee for the **_**very **_**first review EVER for this fic! I appreciate it very much, and I hope a LOT more people will review! Should I discontinue? Or no? O.O I'll wait until chapter 5 or so to see what'll happen. Oh, and everything's made up and there'll be some brief switches of POV's…. So, yeah… R&R once again! I'm aiming for 10 or so reviews in the next chappie.**

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**Chapter 2: Second Chances**

"Everyone deserves a second chance to prove themselves right. It doesn't matter how serious their crime may be. They still have a right to try to receive your trust."

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The metallic silver war balloon propelled itself through the clear, blue sky. Zuko held onto the side, his eyes trained on the flying bison which carried the Avatar and his posse. Without a doubt, he would follow them and beg for their forgiveness. He'd aid them all he could and he wouldn't regret it at all.

"Avatar, I'm coming…" Zuko mumbled, his heart focused completely on the course. It seemed they were heading west or something. "Come on… Damn you stupid ship."

Zuko kicked the basket, urging the balloon to go faster. But of course, that did nothing to speed up the pace of the flying warship. Sighing in defeat, Zuko slumped down, leaning his back against the inside of the balloon. Suddenly, turbulence took over. The whole vehicle bounced and jittered wildly, sending Zuko into spasms of shock. He held onto a rope connecting the balloon and the basket, trying to steer the structure off course for a bit.

"Ugh…." Zuko blasted a bit of fire back behind him, allowing the balloon to quicken its speed and skip a bit of the bumps in the air.

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"We're headed towards the Western Air Temple, so we can be safe. We also need to conceive of a new plan to help the adults," Aang instructed as he pulled back a bit on Appa's reins.

"Well, we should first just concentrate on bringing the children to refuge. Then, well figure out something together. You never know if there's Fire Nation following us and able to hear our plans!" Sokka exclaimed, eyeing a blue pupil warily behind him. "In fact, there's one there RIGHT NOW!"

"WHAT?!" Katara's blue orbs widened considerably. She whirled around in her position on the saddle to face a huge, gray-silver war balloon, heading right towards them. She couldn't quite make out the face of the person inside it, but she was pretty sure it was Fire Nation property. "Aang! Speed up!"

"I'm trying! Come on, Appa! Yip, yip!"

"Ugh… I feel woozy…" Toph sunk down onto her back, rubbing her forehead.

"Toph, you ok?" Katara was about to heal her earth bending friend with some fresh, cool water, but Toph refused.

"No thank you. You've used that water on far too many things." Toph shook her head in protest while rubbing her temples.

"Sokka, take the reins! I'm going to go kick some Fire Nation butt!" Aang grabbed his new, blue glider and soared into the air, leaving Sokka to control Appa. "Keep flying forward."

"Be careful, Aang!" Katara called out behind the Avatar.

With great agility, Aang turned the glider this way and that to avoid turbulence. He arrived just above Zuko's balloon and glided from the back, right into the basket. "Ha!"

Zuko whirled around, surprised to see Aang. "Wait! Avatar! I'm here… to join you…"

"You can't fool us, Zuko. I know what you're up to!" Aang accused.

"No! It's not like that, I swear! I'm here to join you and your forces. I want to help you! Go ahead and get that earth bender of yours! Ask her if I'm lying! Look… I'm sorry for what I've done to you guys for at least a year now. I owe you a lot," Zuko apologized, bowing his head down in shame.

Aang thought over this for a few seconds. Zuko looked perfectly honest and he was practically begging for forgiveness. The bald air bender wanted to forgive his former enemy, but it was such a big risk to take. What did Monk Gyatso once tell him again? Oh yeah huh… _Aang, not everyone is what they seem. Personally, I believe that everyone deserves a second chance to prove themselves right. It doesn't matter how serious their crime may be. They still have a right to try to receive your trust._

"Zuko, you're forgiven…" The now-wise Avatar smiled. His gaze softened just a little bit.

"R-Really?" Zuko looked surprised, his mouth forming a little 'O.'

"Yes, Zuko. Now let's ditch this war balloon and hold on tight to my glider." Aang bent down just so Zuko to hang onto the bar of the flying device.

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"AH!" Zuko gave one last cry as Aang landed his new, blue glider, complete with snack compartment, which Zuko had gratefully used, onto Appa.

"ZUKO?!" Sokka almost fell off the gentle beast upon looking at the Fire Nation prince, or should I say, traitor? "Aang! Watch out! There's a Fire bender here!"

"I know," Aang said softly. "He's…. part of your team now…"

Katara looked bewildered as her eyes averted to Zuko, who was sitting cross-legged, avoiding everyone's stares. "Very well then…" She only partly forgave him, for she knew that Zuko _did _have some good inside of him. He had revealed some of it, back at the crystal caves. And besides, this was _not _the time to get angry. "I'm… glad you changed. We're headed towards the Western Air Temple."

Sokka was practically going crazy. "WHAT?! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU ALL TALKING ABOUT?! FORGIVING HIM?! TOPH??!!!!"

"I can't tell. We're not on the ground." Toph couldn't care less. She was much more focused on her air sickness.

"THERE'S THE TEMPLE! LET'S GO!!!" Sokka screeched, wanting to get away from Zuko as soon as possible.

A white, snow-covered temple loomed up ahead with a beige, creamy glow to it. Sokka hurriedly prepared to land Appa onto one of the flat outer platforms of the air temple.

"Ok, SPEAK!" Sokka hopped off of Appa along with some other terrified children, pointing an accusing finger at the Fire Nation deserter.

"I decided to join you. I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused." Zuko slid off the saddle and landed on one knee.

"You better be!" Toph snapped once she reached the ground. "And by the way, Sokka, he isn't lying. He's telling the truth. Either that, or he's a pretty good liar. But I strongly suspect he's telling the truth."

"Hn. You're NOT welcome here! Now leave!" Sokka gestured towards somewhere _away _from the air temple.

"Now, now, Sokka. Let's not get ahead of ourselves , here," Aang stated in a kind, all-knowing voice. "We should give him a chance, like Gyatso told me!"

"But, Aang, are you serious? He's Fire Nation," Teo pointed out.

"But he looks honest enough…" Katara spoke softly. She pitied the Zuko for the way all the children looked down on him. She, herself, was reluctant in trusting him and her attitude was quite bitter inside, but she had to admit, he deserved another chance. He _did _open up to her back at the caves… "And besides, I agree with Aang. He deserves a second chance. As long as he doesn't abuse our trust." Katara sent him a pleading look.

It didn't go unnoticed as Zuko felt a pang of guilt in his chest as he look away. "I won't let you down."

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**A/N: How was that for a second chapter? Quite short actually… I'll make it longer later on. And also, there's a **_**slight **_**hint of Zutara at the end. More to come later! I'll try not to make it rushed, but I don't want it to be long and draggy either. Hope you like it. R&R if you do!! It's much appreciated. I also thank a second reviewer, amaurea3000. Sweet! That's two reviews!! Love you guys!**

**Poll: Should I include a lot of JinxSongxMaixKataraxZuko in this story? Like, a little distorted love triangle? O.O Lol! Hope you guys put in your votes! Majority wins, as usual…. . **

**P.S.-R&R! It's mucho appreciated!!!**


	3. The Color Red

**Ahaha! Thanks for the reviews guys! I'm hoping for a lot more now!! . Ok, I'm going to try to make this chapter hecka long! Man, those past chapters were kinda short, don't ya think? And I'm awaiting more votes for the poll thingy. Just for a heads up on this chapter's contents…. I'll just tell you guys it's going to be about life at the Western Air Temple and how they're planning to invade once they're sure that all the adults were captured. Ya, the usual… And plus, I'm going to include some of Zuko's attempts to gain their trust and all. I'd like to add in some humor, but I'm not **_**that **_**comical. Lol! Anyways, on with the story!**

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**Chapter 3: The Color Red**

"Red is supposedly the color of love… But why should it be? It also symbolizes desperation, consuming ways, and agonizing pain."

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Zuko gazed around inside the temple, his awe unable to be contained. The dark room was spaced out and empty, but it was very beautiful indeed. The top halves of the walls were carved with beautiful sets of pictures that seemed to tell a story. Zuko's feet scuffled along a pure, off-white marble floor with elegant cracks of dark cream. On one wall in front of him, a great door stood, closed by a series of whimsical-looking instruments connected by tubes. The curious bender guessed that the air nomads used that as their own type of lock, which could only be opened by a powerful gush of air through the tubes.

"It's beautiful, Aang!" Katara breathed. Her hand ran along one of the curlicue designs with pictures of various peaceful-looking monks.

"Yeah, but _he _tends to ruin it all with his big head blocking the doorway!" Sokka jabbed a finger in Zuko's general direction, a steamy look on his face.

"Sokka!" Katara started.

"Hey Scarface! If you're gonna work with us, you gotta show us how you're gonna work," Toph cut in. "Prove to us how you're going to be of some use."

"Hn." Zuko smirked. He knew how he could help, what with his great insight on the Fire Nation ways.

"He's just going to get in the way!" Sokka sniffled.

"Give him a chance," Aang soothed.

Katara rubbed her temples. "We need to come up with a good plan to help the adults. While they're in prison at the Fire Nation, we need to head up to Ba Sing Se and try to win the city back. We also need to gather some new recruits, both adults and children. We'll be needing them when we head back to the Fire Nation."

"The only way to get back to Ba Sing Se now is to go through the Serpent's Pass," Aang added.

"No way am I going there again!" Toph shook her head.

"But you need to come! Aang, Katara, and I will accompany you." Sokka tapped his chin thoughtfully. "We need a way to get in without any guards noticing us. I imagine a lot of them are placed there 24/7."

"I can help," Zuko volunteered.

"NO WAY!" Sokka protested. He shook his head vigorously, his ponytail almost being shaken loose.

"Sokka, think about it. Zuko can help us. He used to be Fire Nation and he should be able to use his knowledge to give us an edge," Aang reasoned.

"B-But… He's just going to THROW our trust back into our FACES! Don't you get it?! He's just a decoy, a distraction! Lord Ozai wants his oh-so-arrogant son here to spy on us! Then, when we go back to Ba Sing Se, he's going to abandon us and run off to his DADDY!"

"Snoozles, calm. You don't even know if that's true or not." Toph yawned carelessly, bending a pebble up to Sokka's head to knock some sense into him.

"OW!"

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Aang, Sokka, Katara, Toph, and Zuko gathered in a corner of the room, hosting a meeting of how to invade Ba Sing Se. Toph, in the meantime, organized committees for the other children to do some work.

Sokka sat in front of a large, unfolded map, scrutinizing each path that led to their destination.

"I think we should take the Serpent's Pass, then head to the outskirts of the city where there are the least guards. I imagine that'd be in the front since the Fire Nation may suspect some refugees may want to take the back way in. It's what most sensible people would do if they want to illegally sneak into a city without passports." Sokka moved an index finger around the map as he talked, pointing to each place he mentioned individually.

"But Sokka, it's not that simple. How'll we get past the guards in front without causing a show?" Katara wondered aloud.

"It's like this. We'll tell them we're nomads or refugees or something like that and we'll have on disguises. Then, we can get past them by making up some kind of story!"

"Oh wow… You're sooo smart, Snoozles," Toph retorted sarcastically, personally not caring about this mission. Really, after being at the Serpent's Pass once, you wouldn't want to go there anymore.

"It's not that simple. The guards aren't _stupid_." Zuko put an emphasis on the word, 'stupid.' Ignoring, Sokka's glare, the hot-headed prince continued. "We have to have a good reason for being there. My suggestion is to look like poor immigrants from the Fire Nation colonies who want to go to Ba Sing Se to start a new life, like what most people do."

"Good idea, but what'll we wear? We have nothing." Aang tugged at his orange-yellow pants.

"I think I'll be able to supply us with some rags that we can make into clothes. Does anyone here know how to sew?" Zuko inquired.

"I have enough experience. I'll purposefully tear up the clothes to make it seem as if we've made a long journey. And as for Aang, you shouldn't come. Your arrows are way too obvious. Stay with the others and help them survive here. Zuko, Sokka, Toph and I will take care of the Ba Sing Se problem."

"But it's dangerous, Katara! What if any of you get hurt?!" Aang's statement was mostly directed at the water bender, as Zuko noticed.

"It's ok. I've got my friends and Sokka to back me up." Katara nodded her head towards Toph, her brother, and Zuko.

"But I have to go!"

"No, Twinkle Toes. I have to agree with Sugar Queen on this one. You need to stay here and help the kids." Toph narrowed her eyes on Aang, despite the fact she couldn't see him.

"Fine. But I get to help you plan and prepare."

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"So we're leaving tonight?" Katara loaded the last pack onto Appa, brushing some invisible dust off her 'new' earth kingdom clothes made of collected rags courtesy of Zuko.

"Yeah. We've got everything we need, right?" Sokka checked off a few items on his mental list as he stared at the bunch of items.

"I think." Katara scanned through every item one last time.

"Ok, then we're ready to depart at nightfall!" Toph smiled genuinely. "Good luck looking after 'em Twinkle Toes!"

"Right…" Aang rolled his eyes. "But be careful."

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Katara rubbed her hands up and down her arms. A chilly breeze flew by, causing goose bumps to form. The wind played with her more straightened chocolate hair gracefully, blowing it into her azure eyes. She didn't want to leave Aang at all-he meant so much to her. She had never really left the young air bender for a lengthy period of time. Her heart didn't want to tear away from him, since he was a really close friend.

"Hey, Katara. Ready to leave?" Toph approached from behind, climbing onto the gentle, furry beast.

"Yeah. I think so. It's just that…."

"I know. You care about Twinkle Toes and you're confused about leaving him. You don't have to tell me."

"You said it all, Toph. I feel… torn in a way. I don't want to say goodbye to him. What if-What if I never see him ever again?" Katara tried to blink away the tears welling up in her eyes.

"Katara, you really shouldn't worry about those kinds of things. We'll make it out. Alive. I swear."

"Ready to go?" Sokka interrupted the melancholy moment.

"I think. Where's Zuko?" Katara sniffed.

"Who cares? Let's ditch him!"

"Sokka…." Katara warned.

"I'm here." Zuko arrived just in time before Katara and Sokka blew up into one of their normal brother-sister arguments.

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Appa flew as high up into the air as he could. Zuko retaliated at the way the crescent moon looked so large when he was this far up in the sky. The stars seemed to twinkle brighter, and looked a lot…. happier, if that was even possible. Plus, the atmosphere was so much more luminescent.

Suddenly, Toph spoke up, a stab of sadness in her voice. "What's red like?"

"What?" Sokka looked taken aback.

"I've never seen red before. And it seems to me that a lot of people mention it everyday. The red clothes, red fruits, etc. etc…"

"Well… Red's the color of love!" Sokka swooned at the thought of Suki, who was most likely back in Ba Sing Se, thanks to Azula. But of course, Sokka, being a warrior and all that, would save his girlfriend from the evil wrath of the ruthless Fire Nation princess.

"Red is supposedly the color of love… But why should it be? It also symbolizes desperation, consuming ways, and agonizing pain," Zuko pointed out.

"Red can mean many things, Toph. It just depends on the way you look at it. In a way, I believe red _is _love. I mean, it's exactly how love is, isn't it? Love is consuming, desperate, blind, and causes pain beyond relief. But love is also soothing, warm, and full of indescribable feelings," Katara connected both Sokka and Zuko's theories together to formulate her own lengthy little spiel.

"Oh. I see…. One more question. Red, as I've heard, is the color of fire and it also symbolizes love? But from what I know, fire is evil, ruthless, hot, painful, and scorching, like the people who have the power to control it."

"Not everyone is like that!" Zuko shot back at the blind earth bender, his fists clenched tightly. "You have no idea! My uncle is not like that!"

"But what about you, Zuko? _You _and the rest of your psychopath family are all like your own element! You, your father, your sister, and your mother! All obsessed FREAKS!" Sokka shrieked.

He went _**over **_the line this time… "YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT MY MOTHER!" Zuko was enraged and yelling at the top of his lungs served to do nothing about his uncontrollable temper. "Don't accuse my mother of anything! She did NOTHING wrong! All she wanted was the best for her children!"

Katara and Toph both had to admit that they felt some pity for the banished prince. "Sokka, can't you be more sensitive?!" Katara's eyes widened. "I'm really sorry, Zuko, but my brother can be an idiot a lot of the times…"

"Yeah. Way to go Snoozles!" Toph scoffed as Appa started to land for some good night's rest.

"WHAT?! It's not MY fault that Zuko's little hell of a nation just HAPPENED to take the life of my MOTHER!" Sokka protested.

Katara froze at her brothers words. She knew that her older sibling could be embarrassing, sexist, stubborn, and insensitive at times, but this was _way _too far. "SOKKA!! Now you're bringing our _mother _into this argument?! Are you really willing to stoop down that low as to insult our only DEAD mother just to have an edge over someone you despise? I'm disappointed in you, you know that? The Fire Nation may have taken Mom away from us, but that's not Zuko's fault, is it? And for the record, I think you've been acting off track ever since he arrived." Katara let her tears flow freely.

Right when Appa landed, she slid off his tail and ran into the remote, desolate-looking forest to be alone. She couldn't care less if she got lost in the dark. All she wanted was to find some secluded place to cry her heart out and wish forlornly for her mother to come back.

"Mom… Why is it when I need you the most, you're not here?" Katara asked, her voice shaking violently.

It was like her tears were the link between her and the spirit world. She knew she wasn't able to access it before, but now, it was as if the connection broke and Katara could see her beautiful mother, standing right in front of her in full view.

"Katara, my dear, you have to come to understand it is Sokka's nature to be overprotective like that. You cannot blame him." Her mothers, flowing brown wavered like the ocean's wave underneath the fluorescent moon.

"M-Mom?" Katara was shocked and relieved at the same time. "I-I missed you so much!" She couldn't bring herself to say anything more than that.

"I know, sweetie, but I want you to know, I can comprehend your feelings. I know what you're going through right now, but you don't have to do this alone. There's someone out there who can share the same view on this topic. You'll find him sometime, someday, don't worry. Oh, and as for Sokka, forgive your brother. You know how pig-headed he can be sometimes. Remember, you'll always have this moment to fall back on if you ever should feel this ripped up again. Now, I have to go…. I love you, Katara. You are maturing into a fine, young woman…"

"Mom! Wait!" Katara reached out to the white-tinted spirit that vanished quickly, a saddened, pained gleam in her eye. "M-Mother…."

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Katara wandered aimlessly back to camp, not even knowing how she found her way back. Her eyes remained puffy and red, her lip quavering, and her arms covered with goose bumps. Her hair was down and in a tangled mess, which suggested some heavy-duty crying. Her shoulders sagged just the tiniest bit and her feet dragged behind her in a grudging way.

"Katara… Look, I'm sorry… I didn't really mean what I said," Sokka apologized, looking shameful himself.

"It's not me you should say sorry too. It's him." Katara motioned towards Zuko, who sat in front of an intense fire, a foreign daze overtaking him.

Sokka really didn't want to do it, but he summoned up the courage inside of his heart and walked up to the outcast. "Z-Zuko… I'm sorry."

"Huh?" Zuko looked up. At least the boomerang boy had the element of surpise within him. He didn't need any bending.

"I said. I'm s-sorry…" Sokka managed to spit it out again, this time in a more agitated way.

"Apology accepted. You didn't know."

Toph sighed in her own little earth tent, glad the argument was settled. For the rest of the night, everyone felt just the slightest taint of awkwardness in the atmosphere. Even Katara's usually more airy, light aura felt a bit draggy and heavy like lead.

"Goodnight, everyone…." Katara whispered to no one in particular before going to sleep on the cold, hard, rocky ground that Toph called a blanket of 'earth.' "Goodnight, mom…"

And just beyond the silky, nighttime horizon, a shadowed, black silhouette within the gray clouds whispered back to her beloved daughter, "Goodnight…. Remember, I love you …"

--------------------------------------_Back to Present Time_--------------------------------------------

Zuko stretched and got up as the scene replayed freshly in his complexly-built mind. He still recalled Katara re-telling him about the somewhat coincidental occasion just a few months back. It was important to him as well as Katara, because it meant that maybe some hopeful day, Zuko could summon Ursa back. And then, he could pour everything out to her. His grief, his pain, his newfound joy, and most of all…. his love….

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**A/N: **Yay! This chapter is a LOT longer than the other ones that I've come up with so far! I'm such a mastermind aren't I? Lol! _Not. _

**Poll: So far, only ONE person voted!! T-T Why o why??? I need at least 10 or so? Come on…. And of course it'll turn out to Zutara in the end, but I'm deciding to tweak this poll a bit. Ok, so who should I include in the triangle? Huh? Huh?**

**Katara, Zuko, Jin**

**Katara, Zuko, Song**

**Katara, Zuko, Mai**

**Katara, Zuko, Self-created character**

**Zuko, Katara, Haru**

**Zuko, Katara, Jet**

**Zuko, Katara, Aang**

**Zuko, Katara, Self-created character**

**OR!! Should I have a square with two guys and two girls? HELP!! Before it's too late and I make the decision myself! x3**

**R&R!!!**


	4. Patience is Gold

**OMG! I AM SOOO SORRY THAT I HAD TO TAKE THIS CHAPTER DOWN FOR A BIT! I needed to edit it because of some silly mistake I made! THANK YOU SO MUCH TO Shoobop for alerting me! You deserve WORSHIP I TELL YOU!! It's these kinds of alert reviewers that can point out apparent mistakes… How stupid could I get? Anyways, here you go. I present Chapter 4 to you, edited.**

**I'm so sorry that I didn't update for so long! I had sooo much work to do in school! Ahahaha! Here are the **_**new **_**choices for the poll. Thanks to those who voted and narrowed some things down!**

**Zuko, Katara, Haru, Jet**

**Mai, Katara, Zuko**

**Zuko, Katara, Aang**

**Katara, Zuko, Jet, Jin/Mai**

**Happy choosing!! Oh, and here's some anonymous replies to some reviewers!**

**Amaurea3000- What do you mean 26?**

**Doctor Anthony- Good idea! I'll consider that…**

**As to everyone else, thank you for reviewing! It's mucho appreciated and I love hearing feedback! I hope you guys can keep on supporting me throughout the rest of the story!**

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**Chapter 4: Patience is Gold**

"Be observing and respectful to your fellow man. Patience is the key to understanding."

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A warm, sunny glow streamed hazily onto Zuko's closed eyes. Upon the touch of the surging amount of morning energy, the fire bender wrenched an eye open, getting up lazily. His vision greeted the solemn eyes of an isolated-looking Avatar. The bald, twelve-year-old monk sat on a lone log, poking a twig into the ashes of a non-existent fire. Zuko narrowed his eyes suspiciously, crumpling the cloth of his gray pants under his clutch.

"What are you doing here?! You're supposed to be back at the Air Temple, guarding the others."

"I had to come. Teo's in charge of the business back at the temple. What'd you do to her." Aang stated forlornly, his gray pupils trained on a lost-looking ant.

"Who?" Zuko inquired nonchalantly.

"Don't play dumb with me. You know who I'm talking about." Now Aang wasn't one to make random assumptions, but he genuinely cared about the subject at matter.

"No, I don't," Zuko retorted dryly.

Aang's gaze diverted to a conked-out Katara, her hair strewn all over her tear-stained face. In this melancholy state, the normally strong water bender looked incredibly vulnerable and weak. "She fell asleep crying."

"It's not my fault!" Zuko protested indignantly. "I swear!"

Aang shot the Fire Nation deserter a skeptical look.

"Really!"

"Really what?" Toph cut in. She leaned coolly against a tree stump, curiosity sparked within her sarcastic nature. Weirdly, she didn't look at all bothered by Aang's appearance. Perhaps she already knew?

"Is Katara ok?" Aang asked.

"Sugar Queen you mean? How would I know?" Toph shrugged.

Zuko stayed silent throughout the remnants of the somewhat despair-filled conversation. He had a distinct feeling that the earth bender was hiding something. Personally, he wondered what was wrong with the water-tribe peasant himself—not that he cared though….

That's when Katara managed to crawl up. She stifled a yawn as her hand went instinctively to her wet face. Wiping away the too-late-to-hide tears, she stretched fully, like a great cat.

"Katara, where were you last night?" Aang quizzed worriedly.

"AANG?! I thought I told you to stay behind!" Katara's eyes bugged out as huge as dinner plates.

"I'm sorry, Katara, but I'm not willing to put you through this kind of danger. I had to come. And besides, Teo is taking care of the other children. Now please, answer my question. Where'd you go last night?"

"Oh… Nowhere in particular…" She hesitated for a few seconds before deciding to go on. "You know, just having some alone time…" _How did he know…? _Katara wondered in her trailing mind.

Aang looked defiant, but let it go reluctantly. He had to respect her wishes as a friend and a secret crush, after all.

"Uh…" Katara sensed an awkward atmosphere. She pleaded that Toph feel it to and would help lighten up the situation a bit.

"SOKKA you lazy butt! Get up!" Toph, with the flick of her wrist, bended up a chunk of rock right underneath his sleeping skins.

"WHOA!" Boomerang boy whizzed up into the air and landed back onto the ground with a BAM. "TOPH!!!"

"You slept in Snoozles."

"URGH! I'm just a simple guy with needs! Why can't I fulfill those needs _without _an INTERRUPTION?!" Sokka looked like he was on the verge of tears.

"This is a war—not your mother's house!" Zuko resisted the urge to pummel and laugh at the so-called 'warrior' at the same time.

"Why you—" Sokka started.

"Guys! This is not the time to be arguing!" Aang tried to be reasonable.

"He started it!" Sokka pointed fingers.

"Hmph." Zuko snorted steam out his nostrils. "Immature idiot," he muttered under his breath.

"Zuko… We don't have a mother," Katara whispered solemnly.

The prince felt his heart stop. He had yet made **another **mistake. What was wrong with him? All he's ever done in the course of his young teenage life was make mistakes. But from now on, he vowed to himself, he should never make _stupid _mistakes like this. And besides, how could he forget? The peasant had told him herself that this war had taken her mother away…

"I'm… sorry…."

"It's ok." Katara smiled briefly then turned to Sokka. "I'm going to find some food for breakfast."

"At least it's better than Snoozles' rocks!" Toph chuckled to herself.

"HEY! Some of them _were _nuts!"

"That was how many, Sokka? Oh, like maybe one out of three?" Aang snickered, the enlightened mood coming back to him.

"Nah-uh! It was at least four!" Sokka counted on his bone-thin fingers.

Katara giggled airily. Whirling around, she came face to face with Zuko. Just for a moment, their eyes locked, like back at the crystal caverns in Ba Sing Se. Everything around them vanished as they stood in a whirling world of nothing but themselves. Fiery, amber orbs burned flames deep into the calm, serene blue of Katara's pupils. This caused a great wave to go about in her eyes. Zuko could just sense the turmoil going on behind that happy smile.

"I-I better go get some food now…" Katara breathed and fled off into the depths of the woody forest.

Zuko just stood there in shock.

"Are you going to stand there all day or help us?" Sokka scowled. He still wasn't too accepting of Zuko, though the tough wall was starting to fade in between them.

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Katara picked up a bunch of raspberries from the branch of a leafy, green bush. Forests and forests of trees encased her with their blankets of lush green shielding Katara from the view of the outer world. She sighed happily and grabbed another bunch of fruit for good measure.

_What was that? _

Her mind referred back to her little connection with Zuko. She still wasn't sure how she had torn away from him. It was intensifying, like if she averted her gaze, she'd lose herself and go insane. How queer. She even felt like… kissing him right then and there.

_His eyes burned with immense hunger for __**me. **__I could __**see **__the intense longing, the grief, the angst, and the pain all swirling together in a dark, grey world. He poured it all out through his eyes. And all I wanted to do was… make it go away. I wanted to protect him and chase his fears into the dark, where they belong._

Whoa. Katara paused right there in her thoughts. Where had that come from? How did she even concoct such a string of complicated-sounding words? With a blink and a fierce shake of her head, Katara went back to busing herself with gathering various berries, nuts, and edible mushrooms found growing on some of the trees.

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Zuko breathed in and out, in and out. He focused on peace, serenity, and tranquility. Even with all the chaos going on around him, he found he could still meditate as long as his thoughts were kept off of the water tribe girl. (Hey! What happened to peasant?)

"ZUKO! Katara has breakfast!" Toph broke his alone time.

Zuko snorted haughtily, getting up slowly to eat something. Indeed, Katara stood in the middle of a circle of commotion, passing out a bunch of berries to everyone along with mushrooms and nuts. Zuko himself despised mushrooms, but he forced himself to go and take some, for fear of letting so much hard work of gathering these things go to waste.

"Here…" Katara handed him his share of the rations.

"Thank you," Zuko murmured gratefully, stuffing his mouth immediately with berries to soothe his aching stomach.

Katara blushed at his showing of gratitude and backed off to another log to sit down and eat.

"Today we have to get moving to Ba Sing Se! The Serpent's Pass shouldn't be too far from here—just a little bit to the west." Sokka started to get all technical again, his map pulled out and in front of him.

Zuko chewed thoughtfully as his eyes traced the directions Sokka's index finger flew over the piece of parchment. "Approximately how long will it take to get through the Serpent's Pass?"

Sokka seethed with anger. This boy just loved bursting his bubble. "It'll take us at least a day if we all _work together_."

"Of course I'll do my share!" Zuko rushed to defend himself.

"What makes you say that? You'd probably just turn your back on us and burn us all into little itty bitty pieces then run for Ba Sing Se yourself!" Sokka accused.

"I can say the same for you!"

The comeback totally owned Sokka. He couldn't think of anything else to say, for Zuko did have a good point.

"Calm down you two! We all need to be able to trust each other, so here's what I'll do!" Toph exchanged a look between Katara and Aang. Well, it was more like just facial expressions…

"You two are going to go catch some fish!" Katara announced.

"WHAT?!" Zuko and Sokka each gave each other death glares.

"You heard her!" Aang chirped. "Be observing and respectful to your fellow man. Patience is the key to understanding." The air bender recollected a saying that Monk Gyatso had once so wisely shared.

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"Fishing…" Sokka grumbled, trudging towards a nearby lake with a fishing pole slung over his shoulder.

"With you it'll be impossible!" Zuko threw his hands up into the air.

"You're the one who'll scare all the fish away!"

"Me?! It's more like you! You're the clumsy buffoon in the group."

Sokka cursed colorfully under his breath as he cast his line deep into the lake, waiting for a tug. Zuko stood on shore, crossing his arms impatiently, observing to see if Sokka could _actually _catch anything, whether it was a fish or just a piece of measly seaweed.

"HEY! I got something!" Sokka started to reel in the line after a few minutes of anticipation.

"WHAT?!" Zuko bolted up, running over to Sokka and the fishing line.

"Ugh… HA!" Sokka drew back a small minnow…

"Impressive, you know?" Zuko drawled caustically, shooting the warrior a disdainful look.

"Hey! It's not supposed to be fishing season!"

Sokka, with his persistence, continued to try and try again. He knew he was pushing Zuko to the limit what with his unskillful ways of catching a simple, edible fish, but hey, like the prince could do any better!

Suddenly, a sharp tugging could be felt at the line. The unexpected jerk almost pulled Sokka into the cold, dirty water. "WHOA!"

Zuko became immediately alert at this and rushed in to see what was happening. "Hold on!" The prince made sure he got a good grip on part of the handle of the pole and pulled as hard as he could. His muscles strained at the exertion and his calves ached with a pulsing, dull pain.

"Urgh…." Sokka's feet slid forward just the tiniest bit. This fish was indeed a strong one.

"Come… on… Pull… HARDER!" Zuko gave one last harsh strain before his muscles gave out and he fell onto his bottom, exhausted. He could just feel his hands beating with spasms of shock and pain. They were all red and swollen now.

Sokka as well fell backwards along with the pole. He knocked his head on a nearby rock but revived miraculously. "Hey! WE CAUGHT IT!"

A giant, over-sized fish flip-flopped on shore, spraying droplets of water sailing through the air. It thoroughly drenched both the teens, who coughed and sputtered repeatedly at this encounter.

"W-We… caught it!" Zuko stammered.

"YEAH!" Sokka, so overcame with joy, actually proceeded to give Zuko a 'man-hug.' "I actually helped to catch a fish this BIG!"

"Uh…" Zuko felt weird to be in Sokka's friendly hug, but it for one, felt like he was part of something, like he belonged."

Maybe Aang was right. Once you were patient with someone, then you might just find something more inside that person.

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"Oh wow… This fish is really good!" Katara said through a mouthful of roast seafood.

"Hm… You two actually did something productive together!" Toph exclaimed sarcastically.

Zuko shrugged casually, swallowing a bite of fish. Sokka sat across from him, looking contented with the amount of meats placed in front of him. Personally, Zuko found it quite entertaining watching Sokka eat.

"Hish ish Good!" Sokka's voice was muffled by the food.

"Well, we can't stay here for long. The Serpent's Pass still awaits us." Aang's mouth was set in a tight, grim line.

"Lighten up, Twinkle Toes! There's still a LOT of time!" Toph threw up her hands.

"Hmm…. Aang _is _right though. We better get started off this evening before dinner so we can get a head start. Ba Sing Se is kind of far away from here," Katara agreed.

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Zuko stared below him, still terrified of the long distance down.

"Scared of heights, Hothead?" Toph remarked from her place on Appa's saddle.

"No!" Zuko declared, though admittedly, he did feel doubtful about being up on this height.

"Hn." Toph scoffed in a very un-lady-like way. But of course, that was how she regularly acted.

"Aang, how far until the Serpent's Pass? Appa's been flying for a pretty long time now…" Katara murmured.

She cast a side-long glance at Sokka, who was curled up in a ball, hugging his knees to his chest. He stared up at a large, luminescent moon, shining bright with a pure white radiance. Katara knew exactly who Sokka was thinking of: Yue. She **was** the _light _of his life. Literally. Every night Sokka would stare up at the moon, thinking of Princess Yue of the Northern Water Tribe. He loved her with his soul and nothing else mattered when he was in his own little world but Yue and him. Of course, there was that other conflict with Suki, and don't get the situation wrong, Sokka _did _love the Kyoshi warriors' leader very much, but he couldn't force himself to stop loving the latter, whether Suki was here or not.

Katara chuckled absentmindedly, a weird-looking smile on her face. She sometimes loved to tease Sokka about being a ladies-man and how it was actually _possible _some girls would like him, but deep inside, she knew that he was worth a **lot **more than he looked.

"Why are you smiling?" Zuko's deep, moody voice interrupted her dreams.

"Huh? Oh… Zuko." Katara forced another cheerful smile onto her face. "Nothing really. Just thinking…"

"You've been doing that a lot lately," Zuko observed. And plus, he was curious to know, what had happened yesterday, when the water bender returned from her little 'alone' time.

Katara looked behind her, where Sokka sat still in his position, and Toph was snapping at Aang to make Appa go faster so she could reach solid ground.

"Well…" Katara didn't know why she would open up to Zuko, but he was just _there _and she had an urge to spill her secrets to the man whom she had earned a whole different view on back in the crystal caverns of Ba Sing Se.

"Go on," Zuko prompted.

"Remember when we were back at the caves?"

Zuko closed his eyes and imagined it, like it happened just yesterday instead of a few months ago. He had cherished that moment and appreciated the fact Katara had offered to help him.

"Yes, I remember."

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**A/N: **Here you go! It's the 4th chapter already! Gosh, thanks for all the reviews guys! Remember, the poll's still going on and the choices have been narrowed by those who _did _take the time to vote. Thank you! You guys are my fuel for writing this lil fic. Anyways, I'm expecting about 10 or so reviews maybe? I mean, really, I worked hard for you guys! Plus, I was trying to fit it into my busy schedule.

Once again, I'm very sorry for the late, late update. I swear that I shall TRY to make it not happen again. And without further ado, I shall say… REVIEW AWAY!!

My goal: 10 reviews for this chapter… Maybe even more?


	5. Reminiscence

**Hi guys! Guess what? I changed my penname! I like it a **_**lot **_**better than Choco sweetie…. Oh well. And I FINALLY decided to update after like, what, a few days? I'm so sorry for the late update, my fellow readers! I've been working on my big project that I've so excitedly mentioned in my profile. I'm still in the process of finding some clips so I don't know how it'll turn out yet… Any suggestions from you guys would be nice or any links to some pics that I may be able to use.**

**Some review replies:**

Amaurea3000-Well… They're at Ba Sing Se to try to fight Azula, who's currently over there ruling…

Princess25-Lol! It's meant to be a cliffhanger! But here's the rest of Katara's story… . I hope it's good enough

**POLL RESULTS:**

_Zuko, Katara, Jet, Haru-3_

_Zuko, Katara, Mai-3_

Zuko, Katara, OC-1

Zuko, Katara, Mai, OC-1

Zuko, Katara, Aang-2

Zuko, Katara, Jin, Jet-1

Zuko, Katara, Mai, Aang-2

**Well, it looks as if Zuko, Katara, Jet, Haru/Zuko, Katara, Mai are the winners. You guys will have to vote on those two. Later on, I may add an OC or some other character as a surprise. xD Ok, so on with the story!**

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**Chapter 5: Reminiscence**

"Sometimes, it's the past memories that keep us alive, rather than the happenings in the present."

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Katara took a deep breath. "Well, I've been thinking recently about what you said we had in common. I don't… get it…"

Zuko looked away, down below him where treacherous cliffs and mountains stood there ground along with the tips of great, green trees.

"It's ok if you prefer not to say anything…" Katara murmured, about to get up to leave.

"No, wait." Zuko subconsciously grabbed her wrist. "My mother… She was a victim of this war. It started when my uncle lost his son, Lu Ten. He was so devastated that he quit his fighting in the army. My father and Azula both called him a fool for retiring from the general position just because he lost a loved one. My father said something of disrespect that I don't know and his punishment was for me to be killed so he'd know what it was like to lose a son."

Katara gasped lightly at how deep the story ran. She never knew Mr. Princey would have such a complex life. No wonder he acted the way he did.

"My mother, upon hearing about this, committed some terrible things that night as a precaution for my safety. My father told me that she killed my grandfather, the Fire Lord back then. That way, my father's punishment wouldn't have to be carried out and he'd be able to ascend to the throne. After that, I only remember my mother telling me that whatever she's done, she did it for me and that I should always remember who I am."

Zuko's words were told in a cold, hard tone, no emotion dribbling out. Katara sat in a deafening silence, her mind twirling with thoughts and ideas.

_Zuko has been through so much. He's hurt deeply. I can tell._

"Your mother could still be alive, you know. Don't give up hope so easily. As for my case, my mother was killed by Fire Nation troops…" Katara narrated the tale as the memory illustrated itself in her mind.

_"I want you both to know that I love you very much and I want you two to remember __**always **__who you are and what makes you uniquely yourself. I love you and stay here…" Katanna hugged both her toddlers to her chest, fresh tears drenching her mocha-colored skin. Her wispy dark brown hair fell in soaked tendrils over her children's frightened faces._

_"Momma…?" A young, five-year-old Katara whispered into her mother's ear, her little arms wrapped around Katanna's waist._

_"Ssh…. Sokka, protect your sister and both of you. Stay here." Katanna commanded, getting up to help her husband._

_"But-" Sokka started._

_"No buts, Sokka. You and Katara stay here behind this ice wall. Don't come out. Don't help anyone. I want you both safe." And with that, the courageous woman ran out from behind her hiding place and into the tangled mess of melting igloos, burning tents, and wildfires._

_"AHHH!" A pained scream from afar caught Katara's attention. She backed up closer to her older brother as her eyes averted to meet the terrified ones of a member of her tribe. A large, armed Fire Nation soldier towered above her, a bolt of hot flames flickering in his black gloved palm._

_"S-Sokka…" Katara whimpered, looking away from the scene with fear settling in the pit of her stomach._

_"Stay back Katara. Mom told us to not help anybody!" Sokka hissed, his teeth gritted with what Katara guessed was fury._

_After a few moments, the young waterbender blinked open an eye to find the previously shrieking woman lying on her stomach in the blood-stained snow, her mouth hanging open and eyes glazed with death. The blue orbs still held some fresh terror in them, but were glassy and shining with tears._

_Katara hated the bubbling feeling of not being able to do anything. She __**hated **__that she couldn't help and had to stand here and witness all of the darkest depths of war, knowing that she was perfectly capable of assisting, but was restricted to by the bindings of maternal love. She imagined that Sokka felt the same way, for his hands were balled up into tight fists. His war makeup was also streaked onto his face, but washed off some by tears, flying bits of snow, and steamy, gray smoke._

_"KATANNA!" A strong, deep manly voice shouted out of the blue._

_The hiding siblings' faces sparked upwards. They crouched a bit lower and peered out from behind their little ice wall. The voice belonged to their great father, Hakoda, chief of the Southern Water Tribe. Their father's usually cheerful look had contorted into one of anger, hate, confusion, and hurt. His voice did sound strained and his arms were extended, holding an unconscious woman in them. _

_Hakoda ignored all the racket and turmoil going on around him for his eyes only looked at his injured wife._

_"M-Mom?" Katara murmured, tears welling up in her eyes._

_She remembered trying to run out there, struggling to help her only mother in some special way. She recalled clearly when Sokka held her back, his own eyes blinking with salty liquid as well…._

_"MOM!!!" Those were the last words that Katara spoke at that scene…._

Zuko pursed his lips into a grim line. He wanted to say something to comfort the quaking girl, but didn't know quite what to say.

"You people from the Fire Nation are taught to be honorable. Is honor the only thing that you can think of to keep you guys going?! Is honor really that important as to overpower love, compassion, and care? All you selfish people only think of yourselves. You don't _know _what it's really like out there in the world. You're unaware of all the homicide, despair, agony, and grief. You have no idea how others feel about your _power_." Katara's voice rose steadily, despite her vibrating form.

"No, Katara… That's not how it's like."

"Don't you dare tell me what I don't know and what I _do _know because you know what? That's really how things seem from the outside!" Katara trembled, her lower lip quivering with anger and grief. "To others, the Fire Nation looks like a monster! That's what they all are! Stereotypes begin to form, did you know? Are you alert to the fact that everyone thinks anybody from your land are total terrors, murderers, and heartless, cruel people!"

"But that's not everybody," Zuko grumbled.

"MY POINT!" Katara practically screamed.

Everyone turned to stare at her.

"Sorry…" Katara apologized, folding and unfolding her hands in her lap.

Zuko blinked before choosing wisely to say something. "Katara, I'm sorry that your mother had to be… burned, ok? I can't do anything about it except promise you that I'll try my hardest in helping to stop this war. I wish that somehow I can reunite with my mother, too, if that helps you in any way."

"It's ok Zuko. You didn't do anything, and besides, you didn't know much about the war back then either." Katara shrugged like it was nothing, but deep inside, it hurt. "And also, I've already seen my mother just recently—last night in fact."

Zuko looked at her with wide eyes, like she was some crazy psycho b. "What do you mean?"

"Well… Last night, when I ran away, I met… my mother's spirit. I know that may sound insane to you, but maybe it _is _just me. When I first saw her, it was like, something inside me snapped. I wanted to tell her about all that I've been through, everything I've seen, and different things that I've done. There was so much to talk about and so little time…"

Zuko nodded in agreement. If he had found his mother, he'd probably start to break down as well. "Maternal love _is _something that everybody seems to take for granted."

Katara sighed, playing with the end of her now-messy braid. "You know something that I've realized?"

"What?"

"Sometimes, it's the past memories that keep us alive, rather than the happenings in the present," Katara stated wisely. "Whenever I try to drift off to sleep, I always, **always**, make sure my mother has the last thought."

"When I look back at my past, I find that the only thing I regret was that I never had enough time with my mother," Zuko acknowledged.

"True enough." Katara's expression turned awry. She suddenly didn't feel like discussing the matter anymore. "I'm hungry… I'm going to go get some seal jerky. Want any?"

Zuko shook his head, sensing that she felt awkward spilling her guts to him.

"Hey! THE SERPENT'S PASS!" Sokka's relieved-sounding voice cut into everyone's thoughts.

"Wha?" Katara jumped a little on Appa's saddle. Looking down below, indeed, she saw it—the treacherous Serpent's Pass.

It still looked exactly like she last remembered it, except the rocks were a little more worn out from their last battle with the dreadful serpent that the pass took its name after.

"Appa's tired as well, so we'll just land at the foot of the pass. Come on, boy!" Aang tugged at the reins.

"Ugh… Finally. Land," Toph groaned, rolling over onto her side.

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"Sokka, hurry up!" Toph called behind her irritably.

"Hey! I'm the one that has to carry all this _**stuff**_!" The boomerang boy complained, lugging some heavy packs behind him onto the dirty ground.

"Sokka, give that to me." Toph snatched away her own green backpack and slung it over her shoulder no problem. "You need a work out, Snoozles."

Sokka sighed, hating to admit that himself.

"Toph's right, Sokka. You are getting a little rounder…" Aang shot his friend a disdainful look. Then looking at Katara the same way, he shuddered, most likely out of coldness, then carried on through the Serpent's Pass fearlessly.

Katara winced at the expression Aang had just gave her. He never looked at her that way and she wondered why. Shrugging it off for now, she followed Aang and the rest of the group.

Zuko trailed behind in absolute silence. He still felt like an outcast among his new peers…

"Hey Hothead!" Toph called from the front. "Stop sulking around and hurry up. We don't need an angsty aura here."

The prince wrinkled his nose at the comment. Angsty? He was _not _angsty. It just looked that way because of his scar and all, no thanks to his father Ozai.

Suddenly, Aang stopped walking. He stood there quietly, surveying the vast, windy territory before him. Something appeared wrong to him as his tentative look shifted into one of hatred. "There's something out there, guys, and it's not good. Prepare to fight."

Immediately, Sokka dropped all his items and transformed into a stance for fighting, his boomerang stretched out in front of him, revealing the extent of his skinny, slightly muscular arms.

Toph, too, slipped into a defensive position, bending a few small pebbles above the ground to look menacing.

Zuko himself stayed on guard, his amber eyes flickering to and fro. Just then, a great beast submerged out of the water. Its seafoam green and pastel purple colors gave it a childish appearance. It gave a loud, deafening roar, red eyes flaring like a deep, intensely blazing fire.

Recklessly diving down, its oversized head aimed straight at the fire bender, a determinedness in them that even the prince had never witnessed before.

"HA!" Zuko sent a pillar of swirling flames at the serpent, its light flaring between them both for a still second.

The beast roared once more, drawing back to dodge the attack. The flame served to only aggravate the green monster even more as it started to recklessly zoom in on anybody.

Katara dove to the side to narrowly avoid being pinned down and smashed into the earth. She scrambled up to preserve her life and ran ahead, summoning Aang with her so they could create a whirlpool amongst the water dragon.

"Aang! You cover the left side. I'll take the right!" Katara instructed, surfing towards the serpent on a bridge of ice.

Aang followed her on his glider, nodding at her address. "Urgh…" Aang brought out some energy from within his heart, performing the graceful moves of water bending. Together, both Katara and him were able to develop a swirling whirlpool of navy blue water. It swished around, creating white, foamy waves within itself to form a mini Milky Way around the serpent.

Gradually, its size increased amazingly, swallowing the serpent into a forceful sea of water. Once its head at last disappeared underneath the surface, Katara and Aang gave up the whirlpool, letting it settle itself down. Deftly, the Avatar swept his secret crush up and carried her as quickly as possible back to land, using his blue glider.

"Great job, Team Avatar, but you could've worked more on making the whirlpool larger. That way, it'll give us more time to run." Sokka patted his little sister on the back encouragingly.

"Sokka, shut up. They don't need any of your witty side comments right now." Toph retorted scornfully.

"I'm just trying to help, you know." Sokka shrugged questioningly.

"We should get going. We don't have much time to waste," Zuko advised wisely. God he was starting to pick up on his uncle's habits…

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**A/N**: Hey guys! How's this chapter?! A little Zutara for ya'll in the beginning. Gah, I feel sorry for both Katara and Zuko myself. Stupid Ozai, bringing all this down on them. xD

**Poll Wrap-up: (Choose one of the two ONLY, please)**

Zuko, Katara, Jet, Haru

Zuko, Katara, Mai

The next chapter will most likely be about the gAang trying to get through the Serpent's Pass in one day and getting into Ba Sing Se without any trouble. I'm looking forward to typing up Chapter 6 and finishing up my little project. OMG, the clips are kind of hard to find. Maybe I should try Yahoo as well as Google… Oh well… Woe is me… . 

R&R please!

**Goal: **12 reviews for this chapter

**Ultimate Goal: **20 reviews for this chapter

**Outta this World (aka Most Likely Impossible) Goal: **30&ovr reviews for this chapter

_Note: I won't update until I receive at LEAST 12 reviews or more. Constructed criticism, suggestions, and praise are what keeps me going and lets me know that people enjoy my work. So, I hope I can get a lot of reviews from you guys. It'll truly, deeply, madly (is that the right order?) help me!!_


	6. Underneath the Stars

**Hello!!! Ah… I feel so confused… I just imagined the **_**perfect **_**Zutara scene last night in my dreams (ya, I'm weird like that xD), and you know what? I wrote it down **_**immediately **_**when I woke up so I remember it. I sooo want to put it in my story ASAP, but of course, I'll be rational and wait until I have a chance. But, it's just sooo sweet! Ugh.. Oh well… I'll be anticipating the moment I can finally type up the little Zutara clipping.**

**Now, let's see… The poll results are…(drumrolls)**

Zuko, Katara, Jet, Haru: 5

_Zuko, Katara, Mai: 6_

**It's kind of clear who the winner is, but boy was that a close call! I guess I can make the final decision; it doesn't have to be this way if not all of you like Mai… But hey, I can make things happen with a snap of my fingers. It is **_**my **_**story…**

**Oops… Almost forgot… **

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Avatar: The Last Airbender, though I wish I did. I am in NO way associated with the creators of this show whatsoever. I'm just one of those piners, begging for Zutara lovey-dovey-ness. xD**

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**Chapter 6: Underneath the Stars**

"With feeling comes pain, with warmth comes scorch, and with love comes territory."

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"Ugh… How long have we been going at this?" Sokka groaned, his achy feet sore and tired from trekking for so long through the dry breeze of the Serpent's Pass. Little pebbles had made their way into his worn shoes, tossed around inside, much to his disdain.

"A few hours. We should be almost there by now…" Aang muttered, peering around warily.

"Stop complaining, Snoolzes. I should be the one whining what with all your complaints," Toph snapped wittily, a rude edge to her tone.

Sokka merely scowled at her remark and scratched his head for a more scathing insult to shoot back at the earth bender.

"Sokka, don't even try," Katara grumbled, moody as well. Her hair stuck out in all sorts of places on her head and out of her messy, loose braid. Her legs felt sore and pulsed with spasms of unbearable, dull pain, as if being blown by fists every second she walked. Her muscles tensed hurtfully with every step she took.

Zuko himself felt chipped down to the very soul. He felt like shutting down on himself and collapsing for a nice, long nap underneath the moon. He moved his jaw to sooth his bones, but his fruitless efforts to loosen up did nothing. His muscles felt gnarly and tightened, stiff at the joints especially.

"Come on, guys. Toughen up. We need to move _faster_," Toph urged, though she felt pretty damned weak as well. Of course, she wouldn't be willing to admit that, even if someone offered her all the sacks of gold coins in the world, plus a nice free trip to that Fancy Lady Day's Spa. It was pretty girlish, but boy, Toph would kill for a spot right there in the sauna or in the hot springs….

"Toph, I'm tired of all your so-called 'encouraging' phrases! You keep bossing _me _around to stop with all my sarcasm, but can I help it?! It's part of my god dammed nature to be this way!" Sokka shrieked, his screechy voice echoing throughout the area with an eerie twinge to it.

Toph's eyes widened and she took a step back, hurt a bit at the biting blow-up.

"Toph…" Aang's gray pupils softened as he took a step forward towards his friend.

"Don't come closer." Toph quivered out of cold, as she'd like to think.

Turning around, she ran for it, away from everyone else. She didn't know where she was going exactly, just trusted her instincts and flew blindly across the rocky terrain, her bare feet pinched by the roughness of ragged stones and dirt.

"SOKKA!" Katara roared at her brother once she was sure Toph was out of earshot.

"What?! It's not my fault she ran! I'm just saying the TRUTH, which is _evidently _what we all need to hear!" Her brother sneered snidely, a hissing sound gathering at the back of his parched throat.

"But is there a need to be that rude?!" Katara yelled, aggravated deeply by Sokka's increasing disrespect for members of the group.

"I'm going to go after her…" Aang spoke softly then took off after his hurt friend.

Zuko just continued to stare at Katara and Sokka's brother-sister argument, not wanting to cut in once. His forehead throbbed with a dizzy ache as he sat down on his rump, legs crossed over one another. Leaning back on a slender but sturdy rock, he closed his eyes to take in a slow, deep breath of fresh air.

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"TOPH!" Aang grabbed the Bei Fong girl's arm.

"Let. Go." In return, the rich, royal twelve-year-old seethed, her eyes and nostrils both flaring with red fury. "I don't need a pity party."

"Toph, calm down. We're not going to make any progress like this."

"GO AWAY!"

Aang sighed patiently, his usual calmness taking over. "Just chill out, Toph. Sit down and we can talk about it. I can tell there's something bothering you besides Sokka."

Toph closed her eyes and hesitated momentarily, then decided on taking Aang's advice and plopped down onto an elevated stone. "No, it isn't just Snoozles that's annoying me. I'm worried about Katara."

At this, Aang became immediately intrigued.

"It seems as if she's been really spaced out lately. And plus, her heartbeat rate increases whenever she's around Hothead there… I don't know what's going on between them, but I can sense something—some kind of connection maybe."

"What do you mean, Toph?" Aang frowned ever so subtly.

"I mean, that Sugar Queen may just be falling in love. Again. And I've been informed about exactly how many times this has caused her trouble. Take Jet for example. Sokka told me about his little conniving mind and his plans to destroy some fire benders."

Aang took a deep breath. "I have to stop her."

"Look, Twinkle Toes, I'm not asking you to stop her or anything. If she's happy, then she's happy. All I'm saying is that she might have a minor crush on Hothead, if it's even possible for him to be liked." Toph shrugged like it was no big deal. "Besides, you have no right to interfere in her private life. I think she needs to think for herself on this one."

"But Zuko might hurt her!"

"Now you're the one being irrational. Think about it. Zuko deserves a second chance and you know that. You're the one who accepted his apology in the first place, weren't you? You showed him compassion and mercy. Now listen to this: If Zuko mistreats Sugar Queen over here, you have the right to beat him up with no regrets. But really, would you want to break Katara's heart by hurting the one she likes?"

Aang put some thought to that. She did have a point. Katara would be pissed off if he just beat Zuko up out of nowhere and for no particular reason at all. It was also out of character and pretty random. "Thank you, Toph… You're a good friend."

The earth bender smiled genuinely, warmth radiating off her face. "You too, Twinkle Toes. I couldn't have asked for a more trustworthy group like you guys."

For some reason, seeing Toph smile like this for the first time in days sent a scatter of fluttering butterflies through Aang's stomach. He couldn't help but return the gesture of kindness to his close friend. The two sat there together for some time in a compatible silence underneath a painted dome of an endless amount of twinkling stars, so far away, but yet so pure and clear. The innocence of them emanated like an everlasting surfeit of glowing illumination.

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"YOU'RE SO… SO… UGH!" Katara couldn't come up with a wittier, funnier, and overall meaner comment than her brother. Without a second thought of dubiety, she stormed away, frustrated at the limits of her mind.

"HA!" Sokka called after his sister pointing a grubby finger behind her trailing form.

Zuko stared at the water tribe boy shockingly. In the Fire Nation, such disrespect would mean a serious punishment, especially if you were a part of the royal family. In the noble Fire Nation country, pupils were taught to respect their elders and fellow peers as well as hold a high amount of honor in their wake. This was most definitely the _proper _way to these red, black, and gold-loving people. Now the water tribe on the other hand had a lot different moralities. They were indeed, strange in Zuko's vehement, amber eyes.

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"Stupid Sokka," Katara muttered angrily under her breath, followed by a few incoherent words. She kicked blindly at a small pebble on the ground, knocking it flat into a tree.

"Uh…"

Katara whipped around at the sound. From the corner of her eye, she caught Zuko staring at her with an unnecessary amount of intensity.

"What?!" She demanded.

"Just wondering why you water tribe peasants don't have any values for morals," Zuko snapped, suddenly angry.

"WHAT?! What do you mean no morals?! We have a HELL lot more morals than you stuck-up snobs do! We, at least, aren't taught to travel around this whole stinkin' world just to stalk some younger, more powerful kid! WE would _never _**EVER **be told to go on a wild goose chase just because of some fucking lost HONOR!" Katara cursed colorfully, which meant she was beyond her usual sanity.

Zuko took a cautious step back, not even knowing the extent of Katara's rage.

"Honor is a respectable trait in everyone, and is worth to be fought over. This is the way of the Fire Nation."

"Well in _my _water tribe, we are taught to show kindness and compassion to those around us. _This _is certainly something _I _could get used to if _you _picked up a little on it," Katara spat wittily. Why hadn't she thought of something like that to retort back to Sokka?

"That is a weakness in war."

"Is that all you care about, war?! I'm not talking about war, idiot! Passion is the light that shines through the darkness. It tugs away all the bindings of war and brings in an abundance of peace for everyone to spread around. Such standards are the rules that everyone must live up in order for a less chaotic life, let alone world," Katara quoted from her Gran-Gran.

"Huh," Zuko grunted, crossing his arms crossly. "But that is certainly _not _the answer to everything."

"I never said it was. But if you think about it, compassion offers you a great deal more love, feeling, and warmth."

"With feeling comes pain, with warmth comes scorch, and with love comes territory."

"Do you have to turn everything positive into a negative statement?" Katara rolled her eyes, though she acknowledged to herself mentally that it was true.

_Note to self: Add that to my list of quotes…._

Katara snapped back to reality when Zuko interrupted once again.

"It's not pessimistic. It's just the truth."

Katara sighed. "Why can't you be more optimistic? Like, look into a more positive side. Not everything is as dark as you make it to be."

Zuko looked at her strangely. "My life isn't exactly the happiest," he drawled sarcastically.

"Then why don't I show exactly how your life can be enlightened," Katara whispered. She slipped a slender mocha hand into his larger, pale ones. "Come with me."

In silence, the two completed their brief travel to a small area secluded by slabs of stone.

"I discovered this the last time we came around, while Appa was gone…" Katara trailed off. "I didn't tell anyone else, nor did I come here often, but now as I ponder about it, I think it may come in handy as of now. It _is _a nice place…"

Zuko entered the miniature cave surrounded by jagged rocks. On the inside, Zuko distinguished a vague shininess on the insides of the rock. They seemed finely polished, as if someone came here everyday just to clean and care for these worthless pieces of hunky stone. But as he stepped in deeper, he realized this was more than a hideout. This looked more like a sanctuary.

A large, reflective lake was dug into the hardened ground, the crescent moon's shape bounding onto the meagerly rippling water. A dimly glowing light flowed from the reflection, casting shadows and illumination onto the enclosing rocks. Their polished exterior served as an even more resonant surface.

"Wow…" Zuko was breathless. His eyes faltered before trailing back to the lake. He noticed respectively that a wooden cross stood strongly in the middle of the body of silver water. It was a pretty plain design, but everything compiled together was a fascinating sight.

"What do you think?" Katara smiled weakly.

"It's… nice."

Katara raised a brow. Was that all? She expected him to say more than just that. This _was _a beautiful area. "Is that all? Just nice?"

Zuko looked away. "I suppose." He shrugged and sat up against a rock, in front of the lake.

Katara seconded the motion, tucking her slit outer dress underneath her. She stared dreamily out into the open, her imagination hazy and foggy with confused thoughts. "I don't know what it is about this place, but I feel so much more at peace with myself here, don't you think? It's just some kind of magnetic force that pulls me towards this sanctuary and I'm inclined to spill out all my secrets. Why don't you give it a shot?"

Zuko looked at the ground in front of him indecisively. A part of him stayed stubborn and wasn't ready to snap yet, but the other half reveled in the idea of confiding in this perceptive water bender.

"Well…" Zuko found it hard to search for the right words. But then, it all started to pour like the rain would on a cold, grey day. "My family was of great importance to me when I was younger. I loved them like a typical child would and expected them to love me back. My sister, Azula, was always the lucky one. She was the prodigy of the family, but I still looked at the bright side, despite her mocking, troublesome ways. For some reason, she would always search eagerly for a plan to get Mai, a childhood friend, and me to get together." Zuko chuckled at the memory.

Katara frowned, but this escaped unnoticed.

"Continuing on, my mother was very kind and caring. She loved me with all her heart. I could feel it every time she came to play with me. I remember one time, when I was feeding turtleducks with her and I through a whole chunk of bread into the pond right on top of one of the ducklings, telling my mother that it was how Azula fed them. Well, my foot ended up being the victim of a turtleduck biting and Mother scolded me. She, as I recall, stated that a mother would bite the aggressor who attacked her baby."

Katara smiled whole-heartedly, happy he was finally starting to open up. She could tell, underneath all that tough outer shells, Zuko had a soft spot in him—somewhere she'd most likely get to soon enough.

"Anyways, one day, I was at a meeting with my grandfather, the current Lord. They suggested… something… and I doubted it. I was merely looking out for the good of the nation, but my father considered it a sort of disrespect. He punished me by saying I had to fight in a challenge." At this, Zuko's voice turned bitter because of a reason Katara didn't know. "I was confident in myself, but when I arrived there, I found out that my opponent was… my father…."

Katara gasped softly. She couldn't imagine the possibility of having to fight her _own _father. "Oh, Zuko… What happened next?" She knew better than to get all sappy with him.

"I… begged for his mercy." It hurt the fire bender's pride at having to admit that. "He considered begging a type of weakness and was angered even more. He said-He said that Azula was born lucky," Zuko gritted his teeth and continued, "and I was lucky to be born. In order to regain my honor, I had to capture the Ava-Aang, but now I know better. My father was only using me. He doesn't care about me at all—hell, he doesn't even love me."

"So that's why you were trying so hard for a year to catch us? You wanted to restore honor? Look, I know that honor is something that you guys are obsessed with deeply, but have you ever stopped to wonder that there may be something more important than that?"

"But not having honor is a weakness."

"Weakness Schmeakness, as Sokka would say." Katara giggled. "You're, in a way, kind of like Toph, you know that? You're both stubborn and headstrong, sometimes thinking in a rash way when tackling an important subject. You both are _**very **_independent and feel you need to do things on your own a lot, not to mention confident of your abilities. But you have to realize that showing weakness is ok. It's a natural human trait to have some kind of soft spot. And for the record, I, personally, find it very honorable to be yourself and show everyone who you truly are. Trust me, you'd find that a lot more fun than concealing your feelings inside yourself like some closed bottle."

"What do you mean? How is that honorable?" Zuko wrinkled his nose, puzzled.

"Oh, but it is! I mean, if you manage to show yourself to the world and express all that's swirling around in you, that takes a lot of courage, considering how much you've been through. By the way, it's ok to let people take care of you sometimes. You might even like the attention. It is _also _a natural human trait to want to give out. As for Azula, she's an exception and we all know that," Katara stated with a straightforward sort of humor. It seems as if some of Sokka's funniness rubbed off over the years.

Zuko had never thought of it that way. He rubbed his temples. A lump of gratitude lodged in his throat. "Thank you, Katara."

"Hey, you called me by my name!" The water bender rolled her eyes, but he could tell she wasn't seriously annoyed.

"It's not like I have no honor at all as to call you peasant or water witch!" Zuko declared.

Katara giggled, subconsciously leaning her head against Zuko's shoulder. "I thank you too, Zuko. You showed me a side of you I've never known and I appreciate the fact that you trust me. I'm glad that you chose me, out of all the people in the world you could've said that to."

Zuko tensed, but relaxed after deciding he liked the warm, fluttering feeling in his stomach. He rested his head comfortably on Katara's head, breathing in the scent of her light-smelling hair. Looking up to the sky, he found this the picture-perfect scenario. No disruptions, no loud noises, no worries—just him, his surroundings, Katara, and the stars.

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**A/N: **Ah… I love this chapter! I'm glad I was finally able to get it up and running! What did you guys think? I added a bit of Taang and some Zutara combined. BTW, here are some replies to some comments… I guess I should clear things up more maybe….

**KauraTytoAlba**-Thank you for your support! I try my best to try and spell correctly and keep up my grammar, and sorry for any punctuation mistakes, but I never was really good at grammar! o

**Firebreath12**-Dang, you guys all have such awesome ideas! I've never even had a thought like that… Very… Action-filled. Maybe that's what this story needs—more action.

**Iwalkinthelight16**-I def. feel sorry for them both! I don't know what I'd do if I lost either of my parents! T-T Hmm… I'm not _that _sure if Azulon was really murdered by Ursa, but I'm just going to trust Ozai for now (unbelievable! I must be a first…) and type that in. xP I'm not too sure when the new episode will air, but I'm impatiently awaiting it! I've been searching EVERYWHERE for it but no traces at all… Unfortunately….

P.S.-I am NOT updating until I get at least 15 reviews! My standards are raising and sooner or later, they'll turn into 100!! MWAHAHAHA!!! Lol, jk, jk. I don't really mean that. That won't happen.

**Goal: 15 reviews**

**OMG Achievement: 20-30 reviews**

**Grammy for Best Storyline (lol, does that even exist?): 31(and over) reviews**

R&R!


	7. I Wish

**You know what? I decided to be nice today and update without having reached my goal of about 15 reviews. I was kind of disappointed, to be honest, but I guess I'll live with what I've got. Ok, so here are some more replies to some reviews of yours:**

**Kitty-Katz-Katz: Thank you so much for noticing that mistake! I guess I got too carried away and started to type down some random stuff there… Aha! That was my bad! Sorry to all the readers who saw that mistake, and thank you Kitty for noticing the typo!**

**Amaurea3000: Hmm… It's ok if you don't like it that much, but would you mind if I asked you what was wrong with it?**

**Okami no kidzukare & Willium Rivera: Thank you! I know Zuko probably was a bit OOC, but I just had to input the fluff!**

**Iwalkinthelight16: Thank you very much! And certainly, I took your advice. I totally agree there should be more action and fighting. I think I'll end the Serpent's Pass journey in this chapter and continue on with some bandit invasions, old Freedom Fighters, and more arguments between the characters. BTW, it **_**was **_**sad they had to kill off Jet. I mean, he really didn't deserve it, but it was a sacrifice he wanted to make I guess.**

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**Chapter 7: I Wish**

"If only I had everything like you do, Sokka, then I'd be happy."

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"Katara, Katara, wake up!" A hushed voice whispered huskily into the sleeping water bender's ear. She felt a pair of hands shake her shoulders frantically before she was finally jerked from her comfortable slumber.

"Ugh…" Katara stared sleepily up into the eyes of Aang, who carried a distressed aura. "What?" She sat up lazily, rubbing a red eye.

"Hurry! We have to leave now! Toph and I think that Azula's caught up with us."

"What?!" Katara hissed in disbelief. This wrenched her awake. Pushing herself up, she gathered up her loosely waving hair and tied it into a messy ponytail, hastily moving about. The others, save Sokka, had already awoke and were swiftly packing up camp.

"Sokka, you lazy ass! Get up!" Toph kicked at the water tribe boy's head, a discontented frown settling on her face.

"I'm up, I'm up!" Sokka always had trouble waking in the mornings, let alone at midnight. "What time is it?" He yawned greatly.

"It's about midnight, but we have to go. Azula's on our tail," Zuko explained, launching himself onto Appa's saddle.

Sokka's eyes bulged out at this statement. "Oh. My. GOD!!! Did we get all our stuff? Is everyone here? Is everyone _safe_? Did we pack up every single thing? Are all the footprints erased? What about the fire we had? Are all the ashes tossed? Where _exactly _is she right now? How long do we have to escape?"

"Snoozles. Calm down. Miss Spoiled Fire Princess is probably a good ten miles away. As long as we are able to escape her grasp by five miles, then we're good." Toph scraped under a nail coolly.

"What. Do. You. Mean??!! The psycho bitch is out there to get us and you're telling me to _CALM_?!?!" Sokka practically screamed, his hands entangled in his hair and pulling at the roots.

"Yep. That's basically it." Toph yawned and mounted Appa along with Katara and Aang.

"So… Are you going to stand there and gape all day or are you going to come up and escape with us?" Katara raised a brow, stifling a low giggle.

"Of course I'm coming!" Sokka declared, trudging up to the giant beast.

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_Here we go again… Another adventure of soaring through the skies, nearly escaping danger. Where will we land this time? What awaits us when we do reach the ground?_

Katara just sat there, pondering these things with her knees curled up to her chest.

ZAP! Suddenly, a sparkle of blue lightning whizzed by her head, nearly sizzling her to a crisp. She could feel the hair on her neck prickle as the fervent heat warmed up comfortably to her formerly cool skin.

"AZULA!" Zuko alerted everyone.

"Come on, boy! Yip, yip!" Aang urged Appa to soar faster, straining the rains on his bison.

"You guys, we have to fight her from the ground. There's no other way! Up in the air, it's too dangerous!" Sokka exclaimed

Zuko clenched his fists as Appa descended slowly behind a patch of rocks.

"Hn. Perfect." Azula smirked, sparking a blue flame onto her index finger. The Rough Rhino she rode galloped heavily towards the giant bison, bearing its teeth and thrashing its horns menacingly.

"She's coming!" Toph bended a shield of rock over everyone's head, just as a streak of lightning hit. "Brace yourselves!"

The rock wall vibrated ominously as everyone withheld a fighting stance. BAM! It burst open, chunks of rock flying randomly into the air. Zuko crouched down, covering his neck and head.

"CHARGE!" Sokka's strangely authoritative voice was what brought Zuko to his senses.

ZIP! Another sparkle of blue lightning zapped through the air with a striking precision. It spiraled clean through the trunk of a nearby tree, then dissolving in midair at the foot of a leafy bush.

"Azula, you won't get away with this!" Zuko felt a thrash of energy flounce up in his stomach and into his chest. It swirled intensely then traveled through his veins, up into his arms. The throng of potential energy thrust up into his fingers, exerting out as a force of blazing orange fire.

A heated pressure between the fire and Azula built up, finally exploding when the spoiled princess brushed away the flame with an armored arm. She smiled smugly, a triumphant gleam in her eye. Without further ado, she charged straight at her traitorous older brother, a fierceness in her movements that she showed _no one _else. Her two henchmen, Mai and Ty Lee followed behind their on their own rhinos. Zuko paused, forgetting everything that was happening to him when he made abrupt eye contact with Mai, his former girlfriend.

_No… Don't make me do this… _Zuko stiffened slightly. He failed to notice the streak of cerulean blast towards him from the side. All he saw was Mai's alarmed look and the bashing of her rhino, which sensed her sudden change in moods. What happened next seemed to etch itself out in slow motion, every little detail happening, outlined with raw emotion.

"ZUKO!!!" An unbelievable force hit him from the side, but there was no pain. No blood oozed out from an expected wound.

"Oof!" Zuko skidded across the rocky ground, tumbling past many pebbles. "Ugh…" He propped himself up, glaring at Azula with a poisonous rage in his eyes.

"Look what you did, Zuzu. You don't belong here. All you'll do is get in the way and hurt those around you. Look at your pathetic water wench girlfriend. She had to save your ass. Are you really that weak as to get distracted by your ex while your current lover tries to save you?" Azula mocked.

Mai winced at these lines, but kept a cool poise.

Zuko looked back at Katara and cringed. The bitter guilt solidified in his chest, creating a lump of regret. The waterbender now lay, crumpled, in a sorry heap off to the side, nursing a gaping wound in her side. A dark liquid oozed over her skin, staining her clothes crimson. Her face contorted into that of pain.

"Katara!" Sokka ran over to his sister's side, followed by Aang and Toph.

"Don't listen to her Zuko! This wasn't your fault!" Katara winced at the barely audible words that managed to escape her lips.

"Azula always lies, Azula always lies…" Zuko chanted over and over again, like it would make his treacherous sister just disappear.

"On the contrary, Zuzu, you're the one who's always deceiving yourself." Azula examined a long, sharp nail.

This gesture of complete coolness made Zuko bristle. "Katara, I-I'm sorry…." He whispered to no one in particular.

"Zuko…" Ty Lee spoke softly from her position behind Azula.

"Come on, Ladies, we're taking them prisoner." Azula snapped. "Mai, Ty Lee, you get the idiot, the earthbender, my brother, and the water wench. The Avatar is _mine_."

"Aang, run!" Katara called out, her voice hoarse. She suddenly groaned, clutching her side in agony.

"Katara! I can't…" Aang shook his head.

"Aang, you have to go. You're our last chance of peace. If you don't go…" Sokka didn't even need to finish his sentence.

A tear slid slowly down Aang's pale cheek. This was no time to cry. Withholding his mental protests, Aang opened up his glider and started up towards the sky, Appa following close behind.

Azula growled lowly, a note of frustration in her tone. "You won't get away!" She shot one last pillar of lightning towards the ascending boy, missing him narrowly by the head.

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"LET ME OUT YOU HEAR?! LET ME OUT!!!" Toph banged helplessly on the wooden cage. But her efforts were futile. She couldn't bend wood.

"We all want to get out as much as you do, Toph, but sadly, we're drugged," Zuko sympathized.

"I wasn't talking to you, Hothead." The earthbender continued to bang her head against the wooden bars, splinters flying out from the impact.

"Ssh… Katara's sleeping." Sokka laid a finger softly on his lips, his eyes gazing back at his unconscious sister in wonder. The threesome had tried their best to heal Katara's gash. Their feats had proved fruitless, but they still wouldn't give up. In the current state, Katara would only worsen.

"Hey little girl! Shut. Up." One of the armed guards barked into the cell. "The princess has been kind enough to bring you food." He spat at the ground rudely, then tossed in a meager bowl of cold rice soup with bits of rotting bread cooked into it. He then shot a disdainful look at Katara. "Water tribe peasants."

"Watch your mouth you bastard!" Sokka was enraged. He leapt up from his spot next to Katara and lunged at the guard, only to be stopped by the bars.

It was then that the guard disrespectfully laughed like he'd never had before. His ringing outburst still echoed in Sokka's ears, even as he made his way down the hall, swinging metallic keys on his gloved finger.

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Katara lay awake that night, her side bluntly drumming with torment. The unbearable pain pierced into her ribcage like nothing else before, severely causing a fresh batch of perspire to roll down her forehead. She felt dirty in this dingy little cage, her hair matted to her head. How could she sleep surrounded by dozens of guards and Aang flying somewhere far, far away. Had he even survived Azula's merciless attacks? She shuddered at the thought of Aang free-falling through the air then tumbling to the ground with a charred corpse remaining.

Knock. Knock. The hair on Katara's neck stood up.

"Zuko…" A soft, emotionless voice hissed through the bars.

She heard a brief rustling of clothes and hands scratching the grounds before the said teen answered. "Mai? What are you doing here?"

"I-I wanted to see if you were ok…" A soft breath escaped the girl's lips before she continued. "I was worried about you. Azula's still deciding your punishment. Zuko, please, take our side. I'm begging you. I don't want to see you get hurt any further."

Zuko sighed, leaning back against the wall. "No, Mai. Understand that I have to do this. My destiny's intertwined with the Ava—Aang's and there's nothing you can do to change that. I swore that I would never betray them I plan on keeping that vow."

"But Zuko! You'll only get hurt more!" Mai whimpered, glistening tears shining in her eyes like crystals.

Katara curled up tighter at the exchanged words. They seemed so close. She never even knew Zuko was capable of loving someone like that. Or was it love at all? They were all so young. What did they know about love? At least, that was what Gran-Gran would tell her.

_Gran-Gran… I miss home so much…_

"Mai, I'm sorry I ever left you. It was something I had to do alone. I know that deep inside, you're unable to betray Azula. Merciless or not, it's all the same. My sister hard provided you with friendship and that's something important. I'll probably regret this later but, Mai, I think it's time we go our separate ways."

Katara inhaled sharply, gasping at a sudden pain that infiltrated her body, courtesy to her injury.

"Wh-What?! Zuko… Please tell me this is a dream and you're just playing some cruel joke," Mai whispered, her voice quavering with fear.

"No, it's not, Mai."

"Is it her?" Katara could just imagine Mai pointing a snide finger at her back.

"No. Now, I'd like to get some sleep." Zuko's voice hardened and with another ruffling of cloth, he was still.

Deft, soft footsteps sauntered quickly out of the room, accompanied by a swishing of fabrics. Mai was gone in an instant, probably craving the dark depths of her room. Katara didn't even realize she was holding her breath until her lungs started to suffocate due to lack of air. Quickly, she drew in a deep gulp of crisp air, her nostrils flaring at the stench.

"Katara, I know you're awake."

Katara winced, but not out of pain. Crawling up, she clutched her side, gasping for an intake of air.

"Katara!" Zuko's eyes widened. He supported her against the thick metal wall behind her.

"You didn't have to do that."

"What do you mean?"

"You didn't have to break it. Your relationship still could've worked you know. You're all just victims of this war. After all this, after Aang finds peace, you can be together again. I know how much you'd like that."

Zuko shook his head. "No. It won't work out. What if the Avatar er… I mean Aang doesn't even make it? What would we do then? And even if he did win, Mai would be imprisoned in the dungeons."

Katara sighed heavily, resting a light hand on her wound. Blood had clotted around the area in a grotesque way. The dried rusty bits fell off whenever she brushed a finger tenderly to the area. It still drummed, batching the beat of her heart, but the hurt could be brushed off compared to how Zuko was feeling right now. He probably was trying very hard to grapple the emotion of being dejected, puzzled, and torn at the same time. No matter. She had felt the same way before and could probably work to console him.

"Zuko, in a world like this, the only way to survive is to have hope. Honor, respect, and all that other crap is pretty much useless, though they can come in handy when negotiating with others. That's what I've learned by traveling with the Avatar. I remember once, we arrived at a town that celebrated Avatar Day. There, we found out that by celebrating, they meant constructing large sculptures of Avatar Roku, Avatar Kyoshi, and Aang, and then burning them. A man with a torch would come and then just burst through one of the sculptures, starting an uproarious cheer throughout the large crowd that would gather."

"My father would've loved _that_," Zuko mused dryly.

Katara giggled softly. "Well, I couldn't help but extinguish the fires then start to persuade the people that the Avatars helped. Aang jumped out onto the shoulder of his statue and announced his arrival to the throng of villagers. You wanna guess what happened next?"

Zuko raised a brow then shook his head, 'no.' "Why are you telling me this anyway?"

"You'll see. Well, Aang was to be put to trial to see if he were to be proven guilty or not. And you know what? He had to pay bail and he gave them water tribe money. Naturally, they wouldn't accept the coins and Aang was convicted…"

Zuko chuckled at this.

"In order to get him out, we had to prove to the villagers he was no threat." Katara didn't want to get into the prickly details, so skipped straight to the end to express her point. "At the very end, after Aang had succeeded in convincing the villagers he was there for their well-being, they developed Avatar Day into something else. This time, they truly celebrated the presence of the Avatar with uncooked dough and great festivities."

"What does this have to do with anything?" Zuko inquired.

"Be patient. I'm just trying to express how trekking on a fateful journey with Aang could be fun. You need to lighten up more, Zuko. Another thing. Have you heard of the tale of Omashu? You know, the Cave of Two Lovers?"

"No…" Zuko looked hesitant to hear the story.

"Well… Once upon a time, two people named Oma and Shu met on the top of a mountain dividing two feuding villages. The twosome fell in love and by learning earthbending from badger-moles, they were able to create intricate but elaborately-built tunnels underground where they could secretly meet often with no one pursuing them. One day, the man Shu didn't show up because he had been killed in the war between the villages. Oma, as you can imagine, had been devastated and she unleashed a very powerful display of earthbending power. But, instead of harming anyone, as expected, she declared the treacherous war to be over. Both the villages helped her build one large city where they could all live in harmony as one. They called that place Omashu, which was a combination of the two names," Katara explained.

Zuko took some time to register all the information just given to him.

"Their situation sort of resembles the one both you and Mai have. I'm not saying that any one of you guys would die or something, but if you look at it this way, things may seem clearer. You and Mai are both positioned in a difficult situation right now. Your only chance of getting through is to have hope and rely on love to pull you through. Faith is what you need, Zuko, just like what Oma and Shu had."

"Are you serious? Do you really think that faith and love and all that other crap will get me through this war? Katara, you _do _realize that this is a fight that can't be avoided, right? Maybe it's delirium…" Zuko stared at her like she was crazy.

"No, I'm not crazy. It's like I said. Maybe you should think about it."

"Mai and I are clearly not meant to be together, so can you please just leave us alone?" Zuko pleaded, his eyes burdened with grief.

Katara looked away. She couldn't bring herself to stare into those vivid, beautiful amber eyes. Wait… Where did the word beautiful come from? Katara's mind whirled with a fluent tsunami of emotions.

"I-I'm just going to go to sleep now…" she said lowly, her voice barely above a whisper.

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Toph sat in the corner of the cell, her head resting atop her drawn knees. Last night, she had heard _everything _Sugar Queen and Hothead had discussed. The love story had the most effect on her. Frankly, she wasn't ever the biggest fan of sappy romance tales, but this one had quite the impression on her. Her mind often drifted back to Aang when the story was brought up into her head. She wanted to know if he was alright. Basically, she was worried about him. Ever since that last alone conversation she'd had with Twinkle Toes, she'd felt different about him. Her heart beat sped up quickly, much like what happened when Katara neared Zuko.

"Toph, get a grip. You _don't _need anybody," the young, naive earthbender told herself confidently.

"Toph, you're up?"

"Hothead." Toph addressed him coolly. "You actually called me by my name. Impressive. So, the rumor is true. Firebenders do rise with the sun."

"Stop acting so tough. We all know you're breaking inside as well."

So, Hothead could read between the lines just as well as she could.

"What're you talking about?" Toph decided to take it the hard way. She'd avoid any contact with Hothead until further ado then, or at least, she'd try to.

"You know what I'm talking about. Don't try to hide your feelings all the time. That will only serve to depress you even more. At least I've learned to be more articulate and communicate more."

"Yeah right, you're still a social outcast, Hothead. You have no right to talk to me like that," Toph claimed.

Zuko furrowed his brows. Once, Katara had told him that he was like this earthbender. Was he really that stubborn? "I may not be as much accepted as you are, but you have an advantage. You've been with them longer. Look, all I'm trying to say is that if you reveal your heart to others, they'll have a chance to help you and you may just be able to discover more in this world."

"I'm proud of you, Hothead. You picked up from your uncle." Toph grinned, straightening her back. She tossed her head and snorted, chortling a bit before going back to speaking. "And if I were you, I wouldn't be so quick to say that the others don't accept you quite yet. It's just that you're reluctant to join in. Remember, I can sense your vibrations."

Zuko could easily guess the conversation being over right when Toph had said that. He had known that the Bei Fong family had been pretty tough, but he never guessed they had such authority. Perhaps all that wealth and power had gone to their heads, just so it did his father. Turning away, he cast a glance at the dozing companions. Katara had curled up into a tight ball, trying to keep herself warm. Sokka was right by his younger sister, his soft snoring disrupting the peace of the air.

Sometimes, Zuko felt he envied the siblings. They had a tight bond, connected not only by blood, but also by heart. Despite their daily arguments and petty fights, anyone could tell they were close. "If only I had everything like you do, Sokka, then I'd be happy," Zuko murmured to himself. If Azula and Zuko were like that, would she be with him on his side right now?

_"Zuzu! What __**are **__you doing?" Azula gave her older brother a playful swat at the shoulder._

_"I'm trying to finish this for you!" Zuko proudly brandished a string of dried flowers, intricately linked together with braided blades of strong grass._

_"Oh! That's so sweet!" Azula perked up immediately. She snatched the floral choker away and looped it over her neck sweetly. "Thanks Zuko!"_

_The two siblings chuckled together, a harmonious atmosphere spiraling around them both._

Zuko chilled involuntarily at the thought that replayed itself over and over again in his mind. A scene like that was literally impossible. Azula would most definitely commit suicide before something like that would ever happen in real life. But, there was still a glimmer of hope in Zuko's heart for Azula's miraculous conversion. Sometime, in a parallel universe when cutesy Koala Sheep took over the world, Azula would be the sweet, but feisty little sister Zuko wished he's always had.

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**A/N: **This chapter was unusually long…. . Oh well… I guess the story had a little twist and there was an awful lot of information to suck into your brains. I inserted a bit of Maiko for those who wanted to see a bit of Zuko and Mai. They broke up in the end, and that's the last you'd be seeing of the Maiko ship in this story, but I didn't want to focus too much on that triangle. I mean, it'd totally distract me from the actual plot of my story, as brought up by one of my readers, **Dea BGA**.

**Dea BGA- **Thank you for bringing that up. I'll try my hardest to focus on my main plot. Also, about Teo, Haru, Momo, and the others, I just want to clear things up. They were left behind at the Western Air Temple to fend for themselves until the Gaang (not a typo) returns after destroying Azula's team at Ba Sing Se.

Anyways, I was really disappointed and saddened by the amount of reviews I received. I was really hoping for 15… Well, with a heavy and discouraged heart, I must say to you guys that I REALLY REALLY am wishing that I'd get 15 reviews for this chapter, to make up for the loss of reviews in the last one.

**Goal: 15 reviews**

_**Note: No updates will occur until 15 or more reviews are submitted. This time, it's for real. I already have chapter 8 planned and ready to be put down on the computer. Chapter 9 is vaguely in my mind as well.**_


	8. Vulnerability

**Hey guys! Here I am with another chapter to update! I've been craving some time to write ever since the morning, but I was too busy to get on and start typing. Well, I did have some inspiration, thanks to the song 'Hot' by Avril Lavigne. I have no idea why is encouraged me to write, but I love it so much so…. I just started to type, and everything flowed.**

**Ok, so I hope I can get a lot of reviews from this! xD BTW, I know this is kind of late, but I'd like to know if anyone would like to be my beta reader for this story! Just one, like on my other story, Evaporate My Tears. Here's the form. Just submit it through the review setion:**

Name (Just the username is fine):

Experience (how long you've been writing, who you've beta read for, if you ever had beta read before):

Stories (Just a list of the stories you've ever written on fanfiction):

Why (Self-explanatory… Why should you be beta reader):

**There you go! I hope people will volunteer…**

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**Chapter 8: Vulnerability**

"There is a weakness in every person, regardless of gender, race, or whatever. If you can find the soft spot, take a dive for it and you may find there's more to the person than you ever knew." _-LavenderHaze_

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Sokka glared at the muddy floors, his head in between his knees. His disgruntlement had nearly erased any blotches of sanity he had left in him. If he was unable to depart from this dammed cell soon, then he'd go lunatic, probably hurting everyone inside with him.

"Sokka, you ok?" Katara placed a warm hand on his sweaty back.

"Yeah, I'm fine. How about you?" Sokka lifted his head weakly, producing an exhausted smile.

"I feel a lot better," Katara lied through gritted teeth, her gape searing with pain once the words escaped her mouth. She inhaled sharply, letting it out gradually when she caught her brother's clouded expression. "I'm just really tired and hot from all this heat." Katara fanned herself repeatedly to cover up.

"Oh. Well, we all are. Even Zuko…" Sokka stared at the Fire Nation deserter, who looked uncomfortable in his sleep. Tiny beads of perspiration trickled down his pale forehead. His eyebrows furrowed together seemingly in frustration and a trembling hand rested on his scarred tissue.

"A nightmare it seems." Katara scrutinized, closing an eye as if to wink.

Sokka shrugged. "I wonder what he's dreaming about. Anything's got to be better than this." He grumbled to add an effect. Tugging at his wolf's tail, as he called it, the water tribe warrior arose, dusting off his hands. "We need to find a way out of here, even if it means risking our lives. Aang is somewhere out there, and may be in danger this very second!"

"I agree with you, Sokka, but how are we going to do that?" Katara nudged her brother in the direction of a snoring guard, who slumped up against the wall of the outside of the cell, drooling a bit.

"Eww…" Sokka squirmed just looking at the unmannered man. "You're right. We need a revised plan." Getting into thinking position, Sokka stroked his chin, as if a goatee were growing there. "I say we sneak out at night."

Katara stared at him. "No duh! But how?"

"If memory doesn't deceive me, then this wood should be able to be cut down without bending and without weapons by just doing this." Sokka demonstrated his idea by picking up a random pebble and sawing it against the bars. "Eh? How does this sound?"

"Uh.. Not so good. We need a quicker and more efficient plan." Katara frowned, patting her stomach gently. "We need our bending back. The only way for that to happen is to wait until the drugs wear off. That means no for food. Except for you, Sokka. You can have some. I mean, what with the no bending and all…"

"Ok, ok. You don't need to rub it in!" Sokka groaned, scowling at his perturbing younger sister. "Sometimes, I wish you'd just stop practicing all your magic voodoo stuff and get real with weapons."

"Magic voodoo stuff? It's bending, Sokka, bending." Katara couldn't resist the urge to roll her eyes as she turned around to face the metal wall.

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Zuko looked bothered by something, or someone to be more specific. All through the night, Mai and Katara had been on his mind. He considered Katara's words with an open mind. Maybe she was right. He needed hope and faith, just like what uncle had had in him. _Uncle…. I miss you…. _Zuko glanced sideways at Katara, who stared off into space, a hand positioned subconsciously on her wound. Just then, a pang of guilt subsided into Zuko's heart. If he had been more careful, then Katara wouldn't have been hurt and none of this would've ever happened.

"Breakfast!" A guard hollered, tossing a single bowl of dried fish into the prison. The tin dish clattered on the hard ground, spilling all its gruesome contents onto the floor. A stench wafted through the air.

Zuko groaned, reaching for one of the anchovies disdainfully.

"Don't eat it. It's drugged." Katara placed a hand on Zuko's wrist. She shot him a stern look, explaining her and Sokka's plan through her eyes.

Zuko nodded in sheer understanding.

"No one would want to eat that shit anyway," Toph pointed out, crossing her arms across her chest, an arrogant look on her face.

"Toph, Toph, Toph. Can you get any blunter than that?" Sokka replied caustically, shaking his head with fake scorn.

"It's what I do!" The Bei Fong girl quipped back.

"How long will it take for the drugs to wear off?" Sokka asked, ignoring his fellow friend.

"I'm not sure. By the looks of it, probably an hour at least. At most, I'd say about a week." Katara shrugged.

"Good. We can't take too long. When the guard comes again for dinner, we'll start the bending fest." Sokka nodded. "Katara, you and Zuko should take turns bending, since my guess is that we'll all be weak with the loss of food. Zuko, you burn the wood first, and then Katara, put it out. Then, the logs should be frail enough to just snap."

"Hm… You _are _smart, Snoozles," Toph mused.

"Shut up! We don't need your stupid sarcasm right now!" Sokka snapped.

"It's always welcome from an awkward silence," Zuko muttered to himself.

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Zuko once again felt the course of energy run through him internally as he summoned his fire from deep within. Out of a finger tip, a small orange flame burst, sizzling with life and heat. Bringing the droplet of anger and passion slowly towards one of the wooden bars, Zuko felt relieved when it started to ignite the prison, sending it rapidly ablaze.

Katara couldn't take it. She didn't like excessive heat, whether it was for her own good or not. Quickly bending the liquid solution a guard had dropped by earlier, she used it to put out the fire, leaving behind soaked, black oak tree wood.

"Let's go!" Toph hissed, slamming her head against the bars. SNAP! The wooden logs encasing the prisoners collapsed with a mildly loud crumble. Stepping out of the smoking room, Katara breathed in the scent of dirt and grime, which built up in their prison since the past few days they had been captured.

"We need to hurry. Any of you know the way out?" Sokka chirped brightly, happy to be free.

"I do. There's an underground passage that we can take in order to get out. If we're able to make it to the crystal catacombs without anyone noticing, then we should be fine. Then, we'll be able to conduct a search for the Avatar and Appa."

"We'll worry about Aang and Appa later, Zuko. As for now, lead us out!" Katara breathed.

"Down here." Zuko pointed at the floor beneath him, motioning for Toph to create a hole as quietly as possible.

Burrowing her way down, Toph made sure everyone got inside before picking up the rear. She mended the chipped rocks as she walked along, sealing the hole behind her. Zuko lit a spark in his finger for light. As he navigated his way around, he tried to ignore the millions of squirming earthworms, just wriggling in their nests underground.

"This way!" Zuko finally was able to make it to the entrance of the secret tunnel that ran underneath Ba Sing Se. "If we're going to overthrow Azula, it's got to start from the inside out."

"No, we can't take your sister down now. First of all, we're way too weak and exhausted. Second of all, we have no food, no armor, no energy, and no weapons. Thirdly we're tired. Fourthly, did I mention that we're EXHAUSTED?!" Sokka denoted.

"Ugh… Fine Snoozles. Be a chicken," Toph groaned, impatience stacking up inside her.

"Ssh… Someone's coming!" Zuko beckoned everyone to hide in the shadows of a towering boulder.

**Tap. Tap. Tap. **Footsteps neared the group, then paused. Zuko bit his lip hard as he watched a pair of fancy-looking slippers stop mid-way, then continue on without another hesitation. _Phew…_

"Let's move on," Zuko commanded once the man was out of earshot.

The group continued on in silence, tip-toeing as quiet as possible.

"Well, well, well… I see our little band of pathetic losers has escaped."

There was only one word that registered in Zuko's mind.

_Azula._

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The earth rumbled beneath Katara's whirling feet. She fought off Mai with every intention of preserving her own life. The girl had an amazing agility and dead-on aim. Her face kept a neutral expression as she attacked. No wonder Zuko had fallen in love with her. She was every bit strong as she was beautiful. Of course, Mai wasn't the drop-dead-gorgeous type as one would call Azula or Ty Lee at first glance, but she had a different prettiness of her own.

Katara resisted the urge to surrender for her muscles tore at the joints and ached all over, especially her calves. Her feet moved with a deteriorated swiftness—she could just feel the cracking of her bones.

Mai just felt like smirking at Katara's diminishing strength. She was the one that Zuko had said sorry to. She was the one that had stolen Zuko's heart. _And she __**will **__pay for it._

"AH!" Katara screeched in a high-pitched wailing tone, just as Mai's poison arrow brushed her sleeve. The waterbender rolled out of the way just in time.

"Katara!" Zuko dodged a lightning bolt his sister sent his way when he realized she was in trouble.

"You can't run Zuzu!" Azula smirked her trademark grin, another sizzling bolt of lightning resurrecting in her palms. With a practiced skill, she concocted a blade of her element, readying for close combat. "HA!" Azula ran in headfirst, her face scrunched up into a war cry.

Zuko's eyes immediately widened as he brought his hands up to his face, unleashing a merciless wrath of orange-red fire swords. The feuding siblings dodged each other's attacks, fighting skillfully.

"I see you've improved, brother." Azula leered while jutting out a lightning blade without breaking a sweat.

"And you haven't changed either, Azula." Zuko panted heavily, his hands occupied with trying to fend off his sister's consistent stabs and punches.

"Why thank you." Azula swirled around, her footwork amazingly complex. With a twirl of her heel and a swift brushing of her leg, Zuko was down on the ground, facing up at his evil sister. "I feel… touched." She placed a hand on her chest, at where her heart was supposed to be.

_Like she even has a heart. _"Go ahead. Kill me. I think I'd rather enjoy it."

Azula smiled smugly. "Oh really, Zuzu? You want to end your life so quickly? Since when did you become so depressed? Since you broke up with Mai?" Her mocking statements almost drove Zuko crazy.

"SHUT UP AZULA!" He roared with a certain degree of determination. His fists clenched together into a ghastly pale ball. Bounding up, Zuko pushed aside his gasps for water and lunged for his sister, an inferno of rage flaring around his aura.

Azula backed up, barely allowing her traitorous brother to touch her. "Your commoner status will not allow you to touch such a high-ranked princess as me." Her arrogance got to her head. Disgusting as it was, Zuko forced down the will to vomit and got up once again. Weakness was not an option in this fight.

"I. Said. Shut. Up!" Zuko went in for the kill, his feet stomping about the ground deftly. His hands whirled around his body in a defensive move, protecting his head as much as he could. The sweaty peasant clothes that clung to his muscular body provided no good armor, only serving to burden him even more. An uncomfortable stickiness in the air hindered every attack he tried to carry out.

"The sun wearing you down?" Azula asked, pouting slightly.

"You wish." Zuko performed an excellent roundhouse kick, his foot miraculously connecting with Azula's jaw.

He swore he heard a sickening crack echo through the air. The crunch made him hesitate to attack.

"AHHH!!!" His sister's piercing scream sounded horrible, ringing over and over again in his own ears. She knelt down, shivering terribly, spasms of pain overcoming her repeatedly. With a trembling hand, she cupped her jaw tenderly, a look of agony deforming her once perfect face. "You… You bastard!" The fire princess mustered up all the strength she could to utter those barely audible words to Zuko, who had been the first probably to harm her in a physical way.

Zuko backed up clumsily, nearly tripping over a particularly large rock. _Damn the stupid stone… _He stared at Azula with wonder, never knowing his sister could ever look so vulnerable. _Kill her now! What are you doing?! _The thought rolled over and over in his mind, turning like a picken on a roasting stick. He wanted so much to listen to the idea, but his arms wouldn't move. His legs stayed rooted to the spot, like it weighed a ton.

"What are you waiting for Zuko? Kill me," Azula whispered again, still clutching her snapped jaw. She managed a hoarse chuckle. "You're weak, just like father said. You're nothing to the Fire Nation—just an unwanted scum. Father will _**never **_accept you. I can promise you that."

What could Zuko say? He only did one thing—the one thing he had vowed once that he'd never do again. Run away.

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Katara clutched at her side, her gaping wound re-opening with a mini geyser of oozing blood. Mai, alarmed, jumped back at the sudden outburst, her eyes widening for a fraction of a second.

"How boring. You're weakened. You lost." Mai yawned, retracting one of her darts back into her sleeve.

"I'm not done just yet." Katara felt the thick, red liquid dripping down her tan hand, which squeezed at her side in a frenzied pain. _Don't fret, Katara. You can make it. You can defeat her._

"How naïve of you," Mai observed, both hands on her sides. She didn't even want to inch near the bloody mess of a water witch.

Katara winced, her fingers pruning from the wet, crimson liquid oozing out from the opened wound. The pain was unbearable, spreading throughout her body like a fast-traveling virus. Her mind started to go blank, pitch black overcoming it quickly. The world grew blurry as Katara's body swayed side to side like a drunkard. Her eyelids drooped heavily down. The last thing she saw was a withdrawn poison dart, freshly dripping with purple liquid held out in Mai's fingertips.

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**A/N: **I know that this chapter wasn't that long, but don't fret! You don't know if Katara dies or not! Haha! Will Zuko come and rescue his fair maiden? Or will he be the sucker off to the corner, moping cuz he's of no help? Haha! I'm joking! So, do you guys want Mai to be an enemy of the main characters or do you want her to turn out into a friend? I'm just asking. Of course the final decision _will _be up to me, but I just want to know some opinions… Anyways, hope you guys apply to be a beta reader! My story really needs a good proof-reading before any further posts.

**Further Requirements:**

-You must be able to be on regularly

-You must check your email at least two or three times a week to check for PM's and such

-If something's up and you can't beta read for some time, please notify me ASAP if it's possible, otherwise I may think that you're slacking

-Don't flame me about chapters. Be honest, not brutally honest. Tell me what's wrong with it. It's like constructed criticism.

**R&R! I hope I can get a lot of reviews!**


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